ABI: EFRA flooding report highlights need for a floods bill says the ABI
Commenting on the publication today (7 May) of the report from the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee on flooding, Stephen Haddrill, the ABI’s Director General, said:
“Despite the devastation and tragedy of last summer’s floods, the UK remains ill-prepared for coping with a major flood. As the Committee recommends, the Government should review the adequacy of its current flood spending plans.
“We need a Floods Bill in the forthcoming Queen’s Speech to clarify flood management responsibility, and to ensure we effectively manage the flood risk.
“The problem of surface water flooding highlighted in the report cannot be tackled until such a Bill is in place. This would need to give The Environment Agency strategic responsibility for tackling all sources of flooding, and give local authorities responsibility, power and the additional money needed to develop local surface water management plans to upgrade drainage systems”.
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