As the county experiences severe wide-spread flooding, businesses, residents and local MP have criticised Rutland County Council for their inaction. 

Following Storm Babet in October 2023 and Storm Henk in January 2024, Rutland County Council held a meeting on 18th January 2024 to request their Overview and Scrutiny Committee further investigate and report back on the issue of flooding. 

At a council meeting in November 2024, Cllr Christine Wise admitted that the authority was finding it hard to find a flooding officer.  

She said: "Unfortunately, we weren't the only area of Great Britain that had flooding, and all of those require Section 19 reports. So, every consultancy in the county has been out appointing all the best flood officers at considerably more income than we can offer." 

Besides appointing a flooding officer, other recommendations include reviewing all policies that relate to flood management and emergency planning, that all parishes have their own emergency plan and that identified high risk areas have an enhanced inspection regime.  

However, now the county is once again struck by severe flooding, the question stands as what have the council done? 

Last year, Kearns and Tallington residents met with the Minister responsible for flooding (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

In a statement on Facebook, MP for Rutland and Stamford Alicia Kearns said: "Rutland County Council's Section 19 review of flooding has been too slow. I'm told it won't conclude until the Summer. 

"We had to force a public meeting on flooding this time last year, I just don't understand how we are where we are given how bad the floods were last year, and how clear it was that action was urgently needed." 

Landlady of the White Lion in Whissendine, Yolanda, appeared on the Jeremy Vine show yesterday (7 January), criticising the Council's inaction. 

Yolanda, Landlady of the White Lion in Whissendine, spoke to Jeremy Vine about the impact of flooding on her life and business (Photo: Jeremy Vine Show, Channel 5)

During the interview, when asked by Jeremy Vine who she thought was to blame for the flooding, Yolanda answered: "Obviously climate change has got a part to play in it, but I think Rutland County Council. This area has always flooded but not like it floods now so something has definitely changed.  

"What's very frustrating is that Rutland County Council seem to be like 'you're used to flooding anyway so what's the big deal? Clean up, reopen, get on with it.' That's the feeling you're getting from them.  

"Rutland County Council, after the October storms, realised there was a problem in Rutland with flooding and they put together an S19 group of people to deal with the flooding and to this day nothing really has been done that we can see has made a difference to us." 

Rutland County Council have been approached for a statement regarding this matter.