FLOOD victims in York and North and East Yorkshire are being invited to share their experiences in a new Parliamentary Internet debate.

The human cost of flooding will be one of the main focuses of the online discussion, floodforum.net, which is being run by the Hansard Society for the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology.

The month-long discussion, which launches on January 21, hopes to stimulate debate on the social impacts of flooding in order to tell Parliament of people's first-hand experiences and views on what should be done to prevent future flooding.

Howard Keal, whose family home in St Nicholas Street, Norton, was left uninhabitable for 18 months after it was twice swamped by flood waters, welcomed the move.

He said: "It is an opportunity for people to send a strong message to the Government about what a traumatic experience it is to be flooded.

"We very much want to be a part of this and hope that as many people as possible will contribute.

"But the current flood defences are inadequate and unless the Government puts hard cash in place and introduces systems where decision can be made more quickly then it is just window dressing."

The forum will involve those who have been flooded, those at risk from flooding, their representatives and flood management professionals.

It follows research which has revealed a significant difference between professional and lay perspectives on flood risk and flood defence.

Anyone wishing to take part should contact Beccy Earnshaw at the Hansard Society by e-mail Edemocracy@lse.ac.uk or by phone on 0207 9557486.

Updated: 08:34 Monday, January 07, 2002