Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to support residents who are evacuated from high-rise residential buildings as a result of flooding.

Flooding in buildings, unless part of a major, wide-area incident, is normally locally managed. In terms of supporting evacuated residents in such circumstances, normally a building owner or insurer will provide alternative accommodation.

Local authorities also have statutory duties to assist households that are homeless or threatened with homelessness (subject to households being eligible, including having recourse to public funds and being habitually resident).

Local authorities must take reasonable steps to prevent and/or relieve homelessness for eligible households. They must also provide temporary accommodation until long-term settled housing is secured for households that have priority need; this includes any household with a dependent child and households that are homeless as a result of an emergency such as flood, fire or other disaster.