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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the new legal and financial processes required for a partnership funding model for Environment Agency projects.

The Government inherited an outdated funding formula for allocating money to proposed flood defences. Established in 2011, the existing formula slows down the delivery of new flood schemes through a complex application process and also neglects more innovative approaches to flood management such as nature-based approaches and sustainable drainage.

We will be consulting on a new and simplified approach to funding floods projects in the coming months. This will include a review of the existing formula to ensure that the challenges facing businesses and rural and coastal communities are adequately taken into account when delivering flood protection.

The Floods Funding Policy consultation will be open to everyone, and we will be inviting all stakeholders to be part of the consultation. We will review all responses received to improve our approach to floods investment.

We will implement the new investment framework from April 2026.