game of thrones cast Labour MP for Cardiff West, Alex Barros-Curtis, said warnings should have been “amber or red”, as Mr Reed told MPs that more flooding is “likely”. Hundreds of homes were left under water, roads were turned into rivers and winds of more than 80mph were recorded across parts of the UK. More than 130 flood warnings and 160 alerts remained in place across the UK on Monday. In the Commons on Monday, Mr Barros-Curtis asked: “Can I ask that the Secretary of State speak to his Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) colleagues to carefully look into the role of the Met Office here? “It is clear that their response was slow and that there was a clear underestimation of the impact of Storm Bert. “They put it yellow rather than amber or red. Our constituents have been let down by this incompetence before, and it cannot keep happening.” Mr Reed said: “In most parts of the countries that were affected, warnings were given with adequate time for people to prepare and I would encourage people to sign up on the Defra website, or the Environment Agency website for warnings and alerts if they live in an area that could be affected by flooding. “I’m aware of the particular concern that he mentions regarding the Met Office, and I will indeed be speaking to colleagues in DSIT as they review the circumstances of that and look at how the situation can be improved for future events of this kind.” A Met Office spokesperson said: “Storm Bert was well forecast, with first signs of disruptive weather signalled a week ahead and the first warnings issued on Wednesday November 20. “A number of warnings were in place ahead of the system reaching the UK. “We work closely with partners to assess the potential risks of extreme weather and warnings covering Wales highlighted the potential for homes and businesses to flood with fast flowing or deep floodwater possible, causing a danger to life. “Observed rainfall totals were broadly in line with the forecast and the severe weather warnings issued in advance.” During his update to the House, the Environment Secretary said that more flooding this week is “likely” but its impact “should be less severe” than has been seen. He said: “Around 28,000 properties are being protected by Environment Agency flood defences. “Unfortunately, an estimated 107 properties have flooded across England, principally from river and surface water flooding.” He added: “The Environment Agency and local responders have also been busy protecting properties elsewhere in England, including flooding from the River Teme in Tenbury Wells where around 40 properties have flooded. “The river has now peaked and local responders will be focusing on the lower reaches of rivers over the next few days.” He further stated: “Further flooding is sadly likely over the next few days as water levels rise in slower flowing rivers such as the Severn and the Ouse. “The Environment Agency anticipates that any impacts should be less severe than we have seen in recent days.” Mr Reed also described the flood defences they inherited from the previous government as being “in the worst condition on record following years of underinvestment”. He added: “Over 3,000 of our key flood defences are below an acceptable standard. “That is why we are investing £2.4 billion over the next two years to build and maintain flood defences.” Elsewhere in the session, Labour MP for Coventry South, Zarah Sultana, was among the MPs to call for a legal duty on fire services to respond to flooding. She said: “I want to express my solidarity and thanks to all of our emergency services, including firefighters on the front line. “Extreme weather events are on the rise and becoming ever more frequent due to climate change, highlighting the urgent need for proper funding and resources. “England is the only part of the UK without a statutory duty for flooding, leaving fire services underfunded and under-resourced to respond effectively. This must change, as the FBU (Fire Brigades Union) has long called for.” “When will the Government finally provide a statutory duty for Fire and Rescue authorities to respond to flooding incidents in England?” Mr Reed replied: “The fire and rescue authorities have the powers to intervene, but she’s quite right to point out there’s not a duty, and officials in my department, working with the Home Office, will review that to see that that remains appropriate.” Conservative MP for Mid Buckinghamshire Greg Smith said some communities in his constituency are flooding “for the first time in decades” as he accused the Government of wanting to “concrete over the countryside”. He said: “That is a result of some of the big infrastructure we are seeing being built, particularly HS2 where they will concrete over a field completely, it seems, unaware that that will have a knock-on effect to farmland next door. “So will the Secretary of State commit to working with the Transport Secretary (Louise Haigh) and I also suggest the Deputy Prime Minister (Angela Rayner) given their plans to concrete over the countryside to ensure that where construction takes place proper, and I really mean proper, flood mitigation measures are put into place.” Mr Reed replied: “This needs to operate across Government, and we will have those conversations and ensure that measures are put in place to support communities as much as is possible from the more severe weather events that we’re seeing as a result of climate change.”Emma Shaw from the Phoenix Education Centre Stormont decision makers need to rethink how they hand out funding if they want to make real difference in disadvantaged communities, a major conference is expected to hear on Thursday. Emma Shaw, Executive Director of East Belfast ’s Phoenix Education Centre, says huge sums have been paid out over the years and many reports written on educational disadvantage but the problems they aim to address persist. Meanwhile, the community activist is running a programme aimed at helping steer young people away from trouble who might otherwise be getting involved in anti social behaviour. Emma helps young people some of whom have not left home in two years and others who are tackling trauma including drug and alcohol addiction as well as interactions with paramilitaries. Read more: Life-saving defibrillators to be rolled out to all NI schools Read more: Belfast children 'deserve better' as youth club wrecked during Storm Bert But she insists that staff at the Phoenix who are “on the ground” could do much more if funding providers stopped “playing it safe” by funnelling large sums to “established” groups. On Thursday, the Summit on Educational Disadvantage, at the Stormont Hotel, will “bring together educators, community leaders, and youth advocates to address the pressing issue of educational inequitable access to resources in East Belfast”. Emma told Belfast Live: “I feel like we’ve had so many reports about educational disadvantage in East Belfast, so many people weighing in about it in terms of policy makers, politicians. But it’s always a very top-down approach. But I feel like no one really engages with the people who live there or the people who work there and do this sort of work and actually understand what the complexities are.” She adds that reports and policy decisions “really miss out working class opinion”, with authors and decision makers “engaging with policy makers, politicians and big charities” but not “people like me on the ground”. Grass roots projects run by Phoenix include Step Up For Change which Emma says has been ongoing since October and has 11 “young people on it who were not going to school or were involved in anti-social behaviour getting referred into it”. Among them are young lads “some of those young people haven’t left the house in two years” but are now getting up every morning much to the delight of their families. The larger organisations that Emma says swallow up much of the funding aimed at tackling educational disadvantage are not on the ground and “don’t have that relationship component, whereas smaller organisations like ourselves, we’re able to be more flexible, we’re having those one-to-ones with them [young people] on a regular basis”. Emma says “the people who are doing the work are maybe overlooked” for much funding. Thursday’s summit is being co-hosted by Unite the union. Susan Fitzgerald, Unite’s regional secretary said: “Educational disadvantage is a class issue. Academic selection and an education system built around the interests of grammar and private schools are failing working class children. “Northern Ireland has the highest proportion of young people leaving school without five GCSEs as a result. A staggering one in twelve 16-24 year olds are not in employment, education or training - higher than anywhere else on these islands. “Poverty and inter-generational deprivation reinforce and perpetuate educational disadvantage. Even the apprenticeships which used to offer an alternative to working class young people these days have academic entry grades beyond reach of young people from working class areas, added to the fact that there simply aren’t enough genuine apprentice opportunities in the first place. “Educational disadvantage feeds into wider social problems. Young people suffering social exclusion, especially young men, can be easy prey for divisive narratives. We have to force our Governments to make sure no child is left behind and that those who have already been failed are given access to skills, decent employment and the respect they deserve.” Join our Belfast Live breaking news service on WhatsApp Click this link or scan the QR code to receive breaking news and top stories from Belfast Live. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice . For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here. Story Saved You can find this story in My Bookmarks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Follow BelfastLive Facebook Twitter Comment More On East Belfast Stormont Education Real LifeTopline Google requested Wednesday that a federal judge throw out his ruling in an antitrust lawsuit won by Epic Games last year, according to Bloomberg , as the Alphabet subsidiary looks to avoid court orders demanding it to make significant changes to the Google Play Store’s payment system. Key Facts Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts : We’re launching text message alerts so you'll always know the biggest stories shaping the day’s headlines. Text “Alerts” to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here. Big Number $700 million. That is how much Google agreed to pay to settle the antitrust suit filed by Epic Games. Some $630 million was “to be distributed for the benefit of consumers” while $70 million was slated for a fund used by the 36 states that signed onto Epic’s lawsuit against Google. Key Background The lawsuit levied against Google stemmed from 2020, when Fortnite, the wildly popular video game developed by Epic, was removed from the Google Play Store after it attempted to use an external billing option without Google’s permission (Fortnite features an item shop allowing users to buy in-game skins, weapon camos and items with real money ). The game was also removed from Apple’s App Store, resulting in Epic filing suit against Google and Apple, accusing the tech giants of forcing app developers to use their proprietary payment systems that included fees. Apple initially walked away unscathed from its lawsuit with Epic, though it is now in a reignited legal battle with Epic and was ordered to allow app makers to use other purchase systems besides its own when it came to in-app purchases. Google was ordered to do the same thing but was ladled with providing a large settlement payout. It also vowed to simplify the process of sideloading, which is when an app is installed from the web without using an app store. Further Reading Google Will Pay $700 Million To Settle Antitrust Suit—And Will Change Play Store Billing (Forbes) Apple And Fortnite Maker Epic Games Are Heading Back To Court Again — Here’s Why (Forbes)

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