Room for improvement in civil emergencies response – says National Assembly Committee

1 July 2013

There is room for improvement in the way organisations respond to civil emergencies such as major floods and extreme weather, according to a National Assembly for Wales Committee.

The Public Accounts Committee has recommended closer scrutiny of how organisations such as the police, fire, medical services and local authorities plan for and cope with civil emergencies and what lessons can be learned.

The Committee also concludes that a proposal to shift to a regional model of response to such emergencies will require a ‘step change’ in coordination and cooperation between all relevant bodies.

In noting the Welsh Government’s desire for its role in managing the response to civil emergencies be put on a statutory footing, the Committee recommends that the Welsh Government clarifies what resources it requires to take over such responsibilities before powers are conferred.

Currently these powers lie with the UK Government’s Cabinet Office with the Welsh Government effectively acting as a go-between. The Committee heard that this was not the case in Scotland and Northern Ireland where responsibilities are devolved.

“Recent emergency situations, including those caused by inclement weather have showed us how reliant we are on the responses of our emergency services,” said Darren Millar AM, Chair of the Public Accounts Committee.

“The evidence we have gathered in this short inquiry clearly indicate that efforts are being made to improve how our resilience community plan for and manage civil emergencies and the Committee welcomes those efforts.

“The Committee concludes that there is still room for improvement. For example, there is a need to collate best practice in managing the impact of social networking during emergency incidents. Social networking can spread both information- and misinformation- far quicker than traditional means of communication.”

”We believe that more thorough, ongoing scrutiny of the organisations at the forefront of planning contingencies is necessary.”

The Committee makes 14 proposals in its report including:

• We note the Welsh Government’s desire to seek the ‘full transfer of the necessary resources’ before seeking the transfer of additional functions of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 from the UK Government. We recommend that the Welsh Government publish a schedule of those resources required to carry out such duties prior to functions being transferred;

• That a move to the four different regional models must require all parts of the resilience community to overcome a number of challenges, including cultural barriers; and,

• That both the Welsh and UK Governments ensure that all Category One responders are consistent in their implementation of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and that their performance is regularly monitored and scrutinised.

Link to more information about the Public Accounts Committee

Link to more information about the civil emergencies in Wales inquiry