The Rt. Hon Edward Argar MP Member of Parliament for Melton & Syston

As we begin the new year, and this my first article for the Syston Town News in 2025, I wanted to take the opportunity to wish all STN readers the very best for 2025. However, as readers will be all too aware, the new year got off to a very wet, then very cold, start as we have all seen in recent weeks, with our local area suffering very significant levels of rain, and snow melting, falling on already saturated ground, leading to widespread flooding in our area, through towns and villages, and across the county. Despite all the work undertaken last year, with the community, individuals, councillors, Syston Town Council (STC), myself as the local MP, and a range of local bodies working with the Environment Agency to help secure the clearing of Barkby Brook, Syston again suffered particularly extensive flooding, with devastating effects on those whose homes or businesses were affected, many having been flooded on previous occasions as well. I met a number of those affected in different parts of the constituency, including Syston, in the days after the floods, to talk with them, and with Syston’s flood wardens, and all of our thoughts are with those affected, and my thanks go to all those who helped out. 
While some flooding following such heavy rainfall over a short period sadly cannot be entirely prevented, I have already spoken to the Floods Minister about local impacts and what more can be done to reduce or manage future risks; have raised in Parliament the need for support for our councils and communities following the flooding, as well as asking about what assessment the Government has made of any link between increased development and increased flood risk; and have raised with the Minister the need for us to look again, as a country, at how flood risk and flood defence is managed, and which organisations are responsible for it to bring greater clarity to responsibilities. 
As readers of the STN will be aware, the responsibilities are split between multiple organisations, and landowners alongside a brook, and who is responsible for what can often be unclear – for example although STC help during floods, they have no formal powers or responsibilities for flood defences etc, aside from those they along with other landowners along the Brook in Syston have to maintain/ keep their sections clear, so I believe greater national clarity to reflect the current challenges is needed.
Alongside this, I have also been in touch with the Environment Agency and Leicestershire County Council to discuss the immediate response, and what more can be done to help people affected, before we also seek to better understand the long-term causes and response needed to try to reduce future risk where possible, for example at a local level through keeping drains, gullies, and brooks clear of debris. As well as highlighting the need for Councillors to be robust in rejecting development applications where there is increased flood risk, I have also called on the Environment Agency, as a first step, to agree to undertake an initial engineering/ hydrological assessment of whether measures like the defences that help protect Melton Mowbray could be technically feasible, and potentially affordable, for Syston, and Sileby. Doing what we can, together, to help reduce flood risk to Syston remains a priority for me, and although there are no instant solutions, I will keep STN readers updated.