MR Prescott was apparently on good form in the Commons, during the "storm" debate. "Two Jags John" said the storms serve as a "wake-up call over global warming".

It now appears that the original forecast, for a three-degree rise in global temperatures, over the next century has been increased to six degrees. If that is the case, England will have far less flooding, because much of it will disappear beneath the globally warmed seas.

With that in mind, the Government's response to demands that new housing should not be built within flood plains, where there is a risk to property, seems somewhat astonishing, especially when one considers that those flood plains are likely to become permanently flooded as sea levels rise.

Politicians tell us global warming is being caused by carbon dioxide emissions -"the car" - yet we are being told that we "must" build another four million homes. Building those homes will add around 20 percent to the carbon dioxide we emit into the atmosphere, because of all the additional central heating units, and all the additional electricity generation, which will be required.

Such a massive increase in housing will also add another 32 million car journeys to our already crowded road network. Is that additional level of urbanisation sustainable? I suggest not. It seems perfectly obvious to me that if we accept our extraordinary weather, of late, as an early manifestation of the effects of global warming, then increasing national carbon dioxide emission levels by the building of another four million houses is an act of environmental suicide.

N TAYLOR,

Solent Road,

Worcester.