03.10.16
Councils will need ‘significantly more’ flood support than promised this winter
The funding promised in the National Flood Resilience Review is not sufficient to address flood defence needs, councils have warned.
The LGA said that the damage from last winter’s floods included 6,586 homes and 897 businesses flooded in Cumbria and 2,090 homes and 533 businesses in Lancashire. Claims for damages caused by the floods is expected to reach over £5bn.
In the National Flood Resilience Review, published in September after delays, the government warned that floods are increasingly likely as a result of climate change and promised £12.5m funding to build temporary flood defences.
But Cllr Martin Tett, the LGA’s environment spokesperson, said that while the funding was important, “councils will need significantly more support from government to help prepare for the possibility of further flooding this winter and recover from any damage”.
The LGA renewed its calls for devolution of flood funding to councils, mandatory anti-flood defences in new homes, and providing businesses with tax relief for contributing to flood defence projects.
Cllr Tett added: “Councils are doing everything they can to protect households and businesses from the possibility of further devastating flooding this winter. Such was the severity of last year’s storms, some councils, who have experienced significant reductions to their core funding, are still helping residents to recover even now.”
(Image c. Owen Humphreys from PA Images)
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