MPs fear flood defences cash shortfall
Millions of homes are at risk of being left without adequate flood defences as MPs warn that further funding is needed to maintain properties.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) also warned it was unclear “where the buck stops” for managing the risk of flooding, as the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has said it is not responsible for the issue.
In their report, the MPs also raised concerns that an agreement between the government and the insurance industry will expire in June next year. This will leave 200,000 homes at risk of being without insurance cover against flooding, according to the Association of British Insurers.
The potential funding gap is also set to widen as the effects of climate change begin to make themselves felt, the report suggested.
Ageing defences
Margaret Hodge, chairwoman of the PAC, said: “Five million properties in England – one in six – are currently at risk of flooding.
“The annual cost of flood damage is at least £1.1bn and ageing defences and climate change will increase that bill. So flood protection is a national priority.
“Yet it is unclear where the buck stops and who is ultimately responsible for managing the risk of flooding.
“There is also a great deal of uncertainty about whether there will be enough money to maintain and improve flood protection in the longer term and who will pay.”
Last week, a climate change assessment carried out for the government warned that annual costs of flooding in England and Wales could increase from around £1.1bn a year to between £1.5bn and £3.5bn by the next decade. Costs were predicted to rise to to between £2.1bn to £12bn by the 2080s.
Despite the Environment Agency’s prediction in 2009 that its flooding budget needed to increase by 9 per cent during the current spending period to maintain levels of flood protection, funding is being reduced by 10 per cent over that time, the PAC said.
Defra told the committee it shares responsibility for flooding with the Environment Agency and local bodies, but the MPs warned the department had no way of knowing if local flood management was adequate and when it should step in.
Ms Hodge added: “It is not acceptable that local people should be left in doubt about where responsibility and accountability lie.”
Read the full report here
At present, the deal between the government and insurers ensures that continuing cover is provided to households who are already insured, despite living in areas at high risk of flood damage.
The industry says that such homes face being priced out of the insurance market once the current agreement ends. It is understood they are arguing that subsidies are required in order to make insurance more accessible and affordable for customers in high-risk areas.
Running out of time
Otto Thoresen, the director general of the Association of British Insurers, said: “We are running out of time to make sure that people in high risk aras are properly protected from the devastation flooding can cause and the ball is now in the government’s court.
“We are frustrated with the progress of our talks with the government on this issue and want it to look urgently at a model that would allow flood cover to remain widely available and competitiely priced.”
A report into the floods which devastated many parts of England in 2007 by Sir Michael Pitt listed a series of recommendations the government should implement as part of its future strategy against flooding.
Defra said resposibility for managing flood defences should rest with local authorities who “are accountable for local flood risk management and should be the first port of call for communities affected by flooding”.
“Sir Michael Pitt’s independent review recommended that councils’ flood strategies should be reviewed by local oversight and scrutiny committees, rather than national bodies, as they are better placed to ensure they meet the needs of communities,” a spokesperson added.
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