Boris Johnson was confronted by voters in South Yorkshire on Wednesday when he arrived to survey areas cut off by flooding.
“You took your time, Boris,” one local man shouted at the prime minister as he toured the village of Stainforth. Another asked: “Where have you been?”
Nearly 100 soldiers have been deployed to the flood-hit area to help with the recovery effort.
One woman helping troops with her wheelbarrow refused to talk to the PM. “I’m not very happy about talking to you so, if you don’t mind, I’ll just mope on with what I’m doing,” she said.
“You’ve not helped us up to [now], I don’t know what you’re here today for.”
When Johnson asked if there was “anything in particular you’d like us to do”, he was told by another man: “No, thank you.”
Another woman who has been helping with the clean up effort said the area was “crying out for help”.
Johnson was told while the help was now arriving it had come “a little bit too late”.
Personnel from the Light Dragoons were spotted laying down sandbags in Stainforth, Doncaster, this morning and attempting to shore up the village’s bridge.
It is hoped that by doing so they will improve access to Fishlake, one of the areas that has been worst affected by last week’s deluge.
The help comes amid fears that further bad weather could be on the way on Thursday, with the Met Office issuing a yellow warning for rain for the whole day covering a vast region from Portsmouth to Hull.
There are 34 flood warnings still in place across England, in locations from Somerset and East Sussex in the South, to as far north as the Lower River Nidd near Harrogate in Yorkshire, and the Holderness Drain in East Yorkshire.
On Tuesday, the prime minister warned there could be further flooding across the country after chairing a meeting of the government’s emergency committee.
Johnson also announced relief funding would be made available for those affected by the floods and said that funding for locals councils to help affected households would be made available to the tune of £500 per eligible household.
Up to £2,500 would be available for small- to medium-sized businesses that have suffered severe impacts and are not covered by insurance.
Jeremy Corbyn said Number 10’s response had been “woeful”. The Labour leader has pledged to spend £5.6bn on flood defences if he wins the keys to Downing Street.
Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson also said the Conservatives were not taking the issue seriously enough.