Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will increase funding to the Environment Agency to clean the tidal stretch of the River Deben in Suffolk to reduce the risk of flooding.

At the last Spending Review the Government increased funding to the Environment Agency (EA) for maintaining flood defences by £22 million per year, so now over £200 million per year is invested in maintenance. This funding ensures flood defences are kept in good working order.

Maintenance is targeted to those areas where it is cost beneficial and will achieve the greatest reduction in flood risk for communities.

The annual maintenance programme for the fluvial River Deben currently includes channel clearance and grass cutting, along with operational checks. On the tidal stretch of the river, the EA undertakes raised embankment mowing and maintenance, along with the operation and maintenance of tidal flood gates. The government has invested £68,000 in total for 2023-24 to maintain both the tidal and fluvial elements of the river and will invest a similar level of funding in 2024-25. In addition, in 2022-23, £121,000 of capital funding was spent repairing the walls of the River Deben.

Future flood defence maintenance budgets will be determined as part of the next Spending Review.