PM visits Bewdley to meet residents affected by flooding

9 Mar 2020 02:43 PM

Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcomes £5.2 billion for flood defences and announces extra £200 million for innovative floods projects.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Bewdley in Worcestershire yesterday (8 March 2020) to thank residents for their resilience during the recent flooding.

Bewdley is now formally in recovery as River Severn levels continue to reduce, but the town was one of a number across the country to suffer flooding following the wettest February on record.

Since the start of Storm Dennis 1,000 Environment Agency staff worked around the clock with the Police, Fire and Rescue and local authorities, and the Prime Minister also used this opportunity to thank first responders for their efforts.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday said:

My every sympathy is with the families and businesses suffering because of the recent floods – I am determined to help them get them back on their feet.

I want to pay tribute to the tireless efforts of the Environment Agency and emergency services who are working to protect communities hit by the recent storms.

We need to keep improving our protections against extreme weather, that is why we are investing £5.2 billion for flood defences to support communities up and down the country.

Following yesterday’s announcement of an extra of £5.2 billion for flood defences in the upcoming Budget, the Prime Minister also announced a new, £200 million fund to pilot innovative approaches to improving flood resilience.

The scheme, which will be confirmed in this week’s Budget, will support cutting edge floods solutions. This could include plans to adapt infrastructure so it is more resilient to damage, or creating sustainable, natural defences like leaky dams and woodland creation.