Thu 17 Jul 2008
Flooding funding announced
The government has announced plans to give councils in those communities hit by last year’s floods £31 million in funding.Areas set to benefit are Rotherham, North Lincolnshire and Croydon, which will receive £1.4 million, £800,000 and £80,000 respectively. Divided 62 ways, each council would receive £500,000. This included the £17m pledged by the Department of Transport to repair roads and bridges damaged by the floods.
“The floods hit large parts of the country, causing devastation and misery for thousands of people,” said floods recovery minister John Healey. “While a huge amount has been achieved over the last year, I know more remains to be done, which is why I will work with councils and insurers to see every effort made to get everyone back home and communities back to normal.”
The government’s move follows the Pitt Review’s findings, published last month a year after the floods, which revealed that Britain’s defences are inadequate to deal with further floods on a scale of those of 2007. The report’s author, Sir Michael Pitt, compared the resulting damage caused to homes, businesses and infrastructure with damage that could be caused by a flu pandemic or a terrorist attack.
“During the year, I have received more than a thousand written submissions from the public and visited communities to see for myself the extraordinary hardship so many families across the country are facing. It is unacceptable that a year on, thousands of people remain in temporary accommodation.
“The risk of flooding continues to escalate, making the events that shattered so many communities an ever-increasing threat. I urge the government to urgently set out the process and timescale for improving resilience in the UK. Waiting for another serious event is a dangerous strategy of luck – we need to act now to protect our future.”
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