Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government when they last undertook a review of critical infrastructure, including electricity substations and their resilience to the threat of flooding; and how frequently such reviews are undertaken.

Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) in the UK, including the energy sector, is subject to thorough scrutiny and sectors need to satisfy stringent sectoral regulatory and national security requirements. Sector Security and Resilience Plans (SSRPs) are produced annually by the 13 CNI sectors, this assurance process asks Lead Government Departments to detail the activity ongoing in their sectors to improve security and resilience to a host of risks, including those from the National Security Risk Assessment such as flooding. For the energy sector specifically, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) independently oversees and enforces the UK’s energy regulatory regime.

A large portion of the UK’s CNI is in private sector hands, and the Government works continuously with CNI owners and operators to support and ensure the security and resilience of their sites and systems. This approach ensures sectors prepare for a range of both malicious risks (threats) and non-malicious risks (hazards), including that of flooding.

The Environment Agency is working with national infrastructure providers and government departments to improve planning for current and future flood risks. This work forms one of the main themes within the Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England.