York flooded by the Environment Agency. Whose side are they on?

The evidence of the year-end is that if there are bad choices to be made, the government (of any complexion) will make them. If there is something that needs doing, the government will waste money on its cosmetic stuff and fail to spend it on anything useful. Thus we get decisions like not building adequate flood defences and opening the ones that are there, causing millions of pounds of damage to the city of York, which the taxpayer will have to cough up for.