The Government has announced 42 new flood defence schemes for 2014 to 2015, an urgent review of additional work needed to restore UK flood defences and maintain them in target condition and a new long term investment strategy on flood defence in time for the Autumn Statement later this year. 

In a statement to the House of Commons today, Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles outlined the Government’s plans for further funding for flood and coastal erosion risk management.

In the short term the Government will provide an additional £130 million for emergency repairs and maintenance: £30 million in the current year and £100 million next year. This is intended to cover costs incurred during the current emergency response and recovery, as well as essential repairs to ensure that defences are maintained.

The Government also intends to publish a 6-year programme of work running up to 2021, including a new long term investment strategy on flood defence in time for the Autumn Statement later this year. This will provide an assessment of the future need for flood and coastal defence which will take account of the latest risk maps and economic analysis.

The Minister also announced 42 new flood defence schemes for 2014 to 2015, including schemes in:

• Salford which will improve protection for more than 2,000 homes and businesses
• Clacton where more than 3,000 homes are currently at risk
• Willerby in the East Riding of Yorkshire where more than 8,000 properties will be better protected

Mr. Pickles said that other smaller, but no less important, schemes in Lincoln, Stockton and Todmorden had also been earmarked.

In addition, the terms of the Bellwin scheme which helps local authorities in England meet the exceptional and unexpected costs associated with protecting lives and properties will be further enhanced, including:

• paying Bellwin Grant at 100% above threshold instead of the normal, default 85%
• allowing upper tier authorities with responsibility for fire to claim on a comparable basis to standalone fire authorities
• reducing Bellwin thresholds for all county councils and unitary authorities
• extending the eligible spending period until the end of March 2014

The Minister added that it was clear that the Bellwin scheme needed further reform, commenting:

“We will be undertaking a full review of the Bellwin scheme in due course, while ensuring that councils continue to have the right incentives to stop flooding happening in the first place.”

He told MPs that Britain’s flood defences have protected more than 1.2 million properties since 5th December – including the Thames Barrier which had protected £200 billion worth of property. However it was evident that the defences “are taking a pounding”, with damage to transport infrastructure and sea defences, including the railway line at Dawlish, as well as to power networks.

Mr. Pickles defended the Government record on flood defence spending, saying that the additional funding would allow the government’s programme of capital investment to continue, fulfilling its commitment to improving defences throughout England. He said:

“Looking further forward, we have made an unprecedented long-term 6-year commitment to record levels of capital investment in improving defences: £370 million in 2015 to 2016 and then the same in real terms each year rising to over £400 million by the end of this decade."

However, he agreed that lessons would need to be learnt in terms of:

• how councils plan and mitigate flood risk
• how central Government helps local authorities
• the role of quangos and the need for local accountability
• the influence of man-made policies on dredging and tree planting on landscape and rivers
• the resilience of the UK  as a whole in the 21st century

He concluded by saying that the new measures provided a clear commitment to reduce the risks of flooding and coastal erosion. The additional funding meant that, over this Parliament, the Government would be investing more than £3.1 billion, compared to £2.7 billion in the previous 5 years under the last Government - more than ever before.

Commenting on the statement, Friends of the Earth Climate Campaigner Guy Shrubsole said:

 "New money to help communities recover from horrendous flooding simply acknowledges that the Coalition was wrong to cut flood defence investment and maintenance in the first place. Eric Pickles may sympathise with people struggling to mop up the mess, but his decision to remove councils’ duty to prepare for climate change impacts back in 2010 puts countless households at risk."

"Unless the Government actually plans for how climate change is set to dramatically worsen flooding, then this knee-jerk crisis management will happen again and again."

To date over 5,000 properties have been flooded, including at least 40 on the Somerset Levels. There are currently 2 severe flood warnings in the west country, 61 flood warnings and 223 flood alerts in place. The Government’s Emergency COBR Committee has met regularly since 29 January - the Prime Minister will chair a further meeting of COBR later today.