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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the risks of flooding.

This Government is investing at least a record £10.5 billion until 2036 – the largest flood programme in history, which is projected to better protect nearly 900,000 properties.

On 14 October, following consultation, the Government announced major changes to its flood and coastal erosion funding policy.

The new funding policy will optimise funding between building new flood projects and maintaining existing defences and will ensure that deprived communities continue to receive vital investment. We will use Government funding to unlock investment from public, private and charitable sources, making every £1 of Government investment go further. We will also invest at least £300 million in natural flood management over ten years – the highest figure to date for the floods programme.

The Government has also set up its Floods Resilience Taskforce to provide oversight of national and local flood resilience and improve preparedness, especially ahead of the autumn and winter flood season.