Prime Minister visits dredging site on Somerset Levels

The Prime Minister has been in Somerset to see the dredging operation on the Levels following the winter floods. He says plans to increase river capacity in the area by up to 40% are the best way to prevent future flooding.

Mr Cameron also made a surprise visit to residents of a village which HAD been under several feet of water. Our reporter Richard Lawrence has spent the day on the Levels

The Prime Minister is visiting Somerset this afternoon to see how the county is recovering after the floods.

David Cameron has been to see how dredging of the Rivers Tone and Parrett is progressing.

Four miles are being dredged, increasing capacity of the rivers by up to 40%. The Prime Minister says people who say dredging won't make a difference are wrong:

David Cameron is in Somerset to see how the county is recovering after the floods.

He's been to see how dredging of the Rivers Tone and Parrett is progressing, and will also visit local residents.

Workers dredging a river in the Somerset Levels have turned up eight cars over the last week, all within 100 metres of each other.

Environment Agency staff working to help relieve flooding in the area noticed the cars, which could be up to 20 years old, in the drainage channel of the River Parrett.

It is so far unknown how the cars may have ended up on the riverbed, but officials stressed they would not have contributed to recent high water levels.

Read: Relief for residents as dredging of Somerset Levels begins

The community has been calling for it for years and now dredging has finally begun of rivers on the Somerset Levels. It's hoped it'll tackle the flooding that has blighted the area this winter.

Dredging has started in Somerset this morning in efforts to stop a repeat of the flooding that happened over the winter. You can watch the work being done below:

Dredging of the River Tone and River Parrett has begun this morning on the Somerset Levels. A four-kilometre stretch of each river will be dredged near Burrowbridge. The Government had promised work would begin before the end of March.