While the Environment Agency, which at first tried to conceal that its chairman was out of the country, claimed that Sir Philip had family ties to Barbados, the man himself was more careful with his language.
Appearing before MPs last week, he said: “I do have two homes, my wife is from the Caribbean, we have a home there and I spent some time there over Christmas. When I'm there I don't feel I'm away, I feel I'm at home because I'm equally at home there.”
Sir Philip, who is paid £100,000 for up to three days’ work a week, eventually landed back in the UK on December 30, and admitted he did not come back as soon as he could have.
He told MPs on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee that he now wished he had returned “one or two days earlier” after the devastating floods. But he insisted: “I don't feel guilty of leaving it many weeks.”
The Environment Agency had initially tried to hide the fact that Sir Philip was in the Caribbean, issuing a statement that said: “Sir Philip Dilley is at home with his family over Christmas. He is in regular touch on the response to the flooding and available to participate in any necessary discussions."
The body only later admitted that he was thousands of miles away, but repeatedly claimed that he had family ties to Barbados.
The newspaper said that Mrs Dilley refused to comment on which island she was from, saying: “You're not saying anything good about what my husband does ... You're just vermin."
Source: http://telegraph.feedsportal.com/c/32726/f/579309/s/4cc385e1/sc/13/l/0L0Stelegraph0O0Cnews0Cearth0Cflooding0C120A915940CSir0EPhilip0EDilleys0Ewife0Enot0Efrom0EBarbados0Bhtml/story01.htm