Criticism of short-term thinking on funding and procuring maintenance
Some five million properties in England - one in six - are at risk of flooding from coastal, river and surface water, according to a new report from the House of Commons public accounts committee.
The influential group of MPs warned of 鈥渕ajor risks to the sustainability of current levels of flood protection, which could impact on long-term value for money鈥�.
The committee said that the Environment Agency, which is responsible for the maintenance of 45% of all flood defences, 鈥渉as limited resources and must make difficult decisions about what it can and cannot fund鈥�. This meant that in August 2014, 鈥渁round half of all asset systems were on a 鈥榤inimum鈥� [maintenance] regime鈥�.
Local authority flood strategies were described by the MPs as 鈥渃rucial鈥� to the success of flood risk management, but they said that 鈥渂y March 2014 only 16% of local authorities had a flood strategy in place鈥�.
The MPs were also concerned about attempts to lever in private funding to pay for flood defences. In 2011, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) introduced a new partnership funding model for flood defences, which aimed to raise 拢600m over six years. So far, 拢140m has been raised, according to the committee. The MPs said that 鈥渢he approach to accessing partnership funding does not yet have the strategic focus needed to match government鈥檚 ambitions for it鈥�.
Flood defence funding did receive a boost in chancellor George Osborne鈥檚 Budget, with 拢57m of funding brought forward for flood defence schemes in the East and South-east to help makeup for an estimated 拢600m shortfall of funding in the government鈥檚 拢2.3bn flood defence programme.
Richard Bacon, Tory MP for South Norfolk and a committee member, said: 鈥淭he current capital budget for flood risk management has been approved for a six-year period, but the revenue budget settlement is agreed on an annual basis. This limits the agency鈥檚 ability to take a long term approach to planning and procuring maintenance. The agency鈥檚 new long term investment strategy should be used as a basis to negotiate future settlements.鈥�
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