The Government is to make an additional £100 million of new money available to help with the current floods.
The extra £100 million will be made available to fund essential flood repairs and maintenance over the next year and cover £75 million for repairs, £10 million for urgent work in Somerset to deliver the action plan being prepared by the local agencies and £15 million for extra maintenance.
Announcing the decision during Prime Minister’s Question time in the House of Commons today, David Cameron said:
“Whatever is required—whether it is dredging on the Rivers Tone and Parrett, support for emergency services, fresh money for flood defences, or action across the board—the Government will help those families, and will get this issue sorted. “
The Prime Minister said the Government would also be paying local authorities 100% of eligible costs above the Bellwin grant threshold and that the eligible spending period for Bellwin claims would be extended until the end of March 2014, in light of the continuing bad weather.
According to the Prime Minister, the Government have spent £2.4 billion over this four-year period, - more than the £2.2 billion spent under the previous Government –disputed by the Labour leader who said that the figures actually show ed that investment by the Government had fallen, not risen over the period.
Ed Miliband accused the Government of being slow to respond to the crisis, saying:
“As the Prime Minister knows, many of those who have been affected feel that the Government’s response has been slow, and that more could have been done sooner.”
The Prime Minister said he did not accept that the Government had been slow and the Cobra emergency committee had been meeting on a daily basis.
Ed Miliband said the events demanded “a comprehensive look” at the Government’s investment in flood protection and the speed of their response.
Secretary of State for the Environment Owen Paterson, whoi has come in for serious criticism over his handling of the crisis, is due to make a comprehensive statement to the House of Commons tomorrow.
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