Parliamentary Committees and Public Enquiries
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Government makes no commitment to national flooding helpline in response to EAC report
Government response: Flood resilience in England
Today the Environmental Audit Committee has published the Government’s response to its report on ‘Flood resilience in England’.
In the Committee’s report, MPs recommended the Government set up a single, national flood reporting service, warning of fragmented responsibilities that confuse the public and undermine trust.
The Government says it will use this recommendation as the starting point to identify ways it could improve communication and coordination with the public around flood reporting. However, it does not commit to concrete action or a timeline.
It also says it agrees with the need for greater catchment-based planning, and that it will move to a catchment-based model for water planning. It also acknowledges the need for national flood resilience standards, but stops short of committing to them, instead deferring further detail to its forthcoming water white paper.
The Government says it is investing £2.65 over two years in flood resilience and spending £4.2 billion over three years to construct new flood schemes and to repair existing defences.
Chair comment
“I’m pleased that the Government is taking our recommendations on board, but too many responses rely on future reviews, consultations, and strategy refreshes rather than decisive commitments. Granting flood victims a central service to report flooding and get urgent information is critical to maintaining public trust. I’d like to see this avenue pursued with more immediate urgency.
Similarly, the Government’s existing funding for flood resilience is encouraging, but more is still needed. We must make sure that deprived and isolated communities are not forgotten in funding allocations too.
With flooding risk increasing, delay risks leaving communities exposed. The Committee will consider this response in detail and pursue questions further in the new year.”
Original article link: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/62/environmental-audit-committee/news/211101/government-makes-no-commitment-to-national-flooding-helpline-in-response-to-eac-report/
