A report by the Environment Agency (EA) has revealed the body is failing to meet its targets to maintain flood defences with 3,097 (7.9 per cent) of “high consequence assets” currently below their target condition.
Former senior figures within the EA told The i Paper that funding for the maintenance of flood defences is an “ongoing problem” and called on Rachel Reeves to address the issue at the upcoming Spending Review.
He said many of the embankments are old; in East Anglia some date back to the 1600s, while some defences in the North West are filled with the rubble of buildings bombed during World War Two.
In 2023 and 2024 Britain experienced the highest number of named storms on record, resulting in thousands of homes and businesses being flooded.
Curtin said the poor state of some of the EA’s defences did not necessarily mean they’d fail during a flood, but did mean they’re “not up to standard and will deteriorate more quickly”.
Labour blamed the previous Tory government for the state of Britain’s flood defences, stating that it “has inherited flood defences in their worst condition on record”.
A new report by research firm Public First, spearheaded by former EA chair Emma Howard Boyd, calls on the Chancellor to commit at least £1.5bn per year to the flood budget.
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At the Autumn Budget The Treasury said flood defences are a “significant funding pressure” that must be “reviewed”, stoking fears that the EA’s budget will be slashed.
Howard Boyd told The i Paper any cuts to the flood budget would put “at risk” the EA’s plans to “get ahead” of the growing flood threat that climate change is bringing to the UK.
An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “We are sadly very aware of the devastating impact that flooding can have, which is why protecting communities is our top priority.
“This will ensure our assets are as resilient and reliable as possible and operate as expected in flood events.”
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