Flood Preparedness: Carlisle

Debate between Emma Hardy and Matt Rodda

Thursday 24th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Emma Hardy)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle (Ms Minns) for securing this debate. I wish a happy birthday to her mam, who I believe has her birthday at the weekend. I am really delighted to have the opportunity to hear about and discuss the steps being taken to prepare for flooding in Carlisle and across England. On a personal level, I have to say that my hon. Friend’s constituents made an excellent choice in making her their Member of Parliament, because she always lobbies me so nicely. That is always nice, but it also makes it very difficult for me ever to say no. I spoke with the Environment Agency earlier, and its representatives also told me how engaged my hon. Friend has been on flood risk reduction in Carlisle and were very complimentary about her persistent and kind lobbying.

Protecting communities, homes, businesses and farmland is our priority, and that is more important than ever as climate change brings more extreme weather to the nation. I have met my hon. Friend twice in the last year formally, and many times informally, to speak about some of the challenges that her constituency faces. I understand the awful experience of flooding, and I know full well that flooding of any kind is devastating for those affected. My hon. Friend has spoken in this House on the issue of flooding 20 years after the terrible 2005 floods, which are considered the worst in Carlisle since 1822 and, as she said, tragically claimed the lives of three people. In 2015, Carlisle saw further devastation from Storm Desmond. I know that she raised that issue last December, asking the Prime Minister what assurances could be given on delivering flood defences that might prevent a repeat. Only last year, Carlisle was badly affected again, so I understand my hon. Friend’s urgency.

Unlike the last Government, who left our defences in a state of disrepair, I am pleased to share that the investment for this year between April ’25 and March ’26 includes more than £1 million across nine schemes in my hon. Friend’s constituency alone. Her constituency is receiving £1,015,000 this financial year, of which £660,000 is allocated to the city of Carlisle itself. I know that she has expressed particular concern about the delays to the Caldew flood risk management scheme, which I am delighted to confirm has an investment of £300,000 this year for further development. I hope that reassures her that efforts to reduce flood risk to more than 1,700 properties in the Denton Holme, Caldewgate and Willowholme areas of the city are firmly in motion.

My hon. Friend mentioned the Caldew flood risk management scheme, which in ’25-26 will receive an investment of £300,000, in relation to feasibility studies. In 2021, Environment Agency consultants carried out a feasibility study on further flood risk management options for the city of Carlisle, the outcome of which was that that option was not viable. However, another feasibility study is live on other potential options for flood risk management schemes, including, as my hon. Friend mentioned, work upstream of the city. The EA expects that study to conclude this summer.

Great progress has been made in Carlisle in recent years. Parts of the area have some of the highest standards of river and flood protection anywhere in the country, with new flooding schemes designed with a 0.5% annual probability of flooding. My hon. Friend highlighted the work of Jen Selvidge, the RSPB Geltsdale reserve warden, in helping to return 1.8 km of Howgill beck to its natural state of wiggliness, and the work of the Carlisle Flood Action Group to keep Carlisle’s flood preparedness in the spotlight. Local flood action groups play such an important role across this country. Led by the communities themselves, those groups give a voice to local areas and allow communities to work in partnership with local authorities and the Environment Agency. I pay tribute to all of them up and down the country.

Turning to the use of emergency shelters in a flooding event, it is of course local authorities that are responsible for setting up and managing rest centres during evacuations, providing temporary shelter and support for those who have been evacuated. Typically, those locations are not published in advance, as the locations in use will depend on availability, the location of the emergency, and the number of people who may need to use them. The concern is that publishing in advance could risk people attending an inactive location, or one affected by the emergency itself—my hon. Friend mentioned one of the emergency centres itself being flooded, and therefore unable to be used. We will, however, work with the local authority to ensure that a list of potential shelters is published, which can provide residents with notice of where their nearest shelters may be set up.

During a flood emergency, local authorities and the Environment Agency work closely with other emergency partners to co-ordinate messaging—including the possible use of emergency alerts—to affected communities and local flood groups, to ensure that residents have timely and consistent guidance during an emergency. I spoke to the Environment Agency this morning, which informed me that it would contact my hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle to discuss the location of emergency shelters in Carlisle and how to make people aware of where they could be, while taking into account that in an emergency, some of them might not be able to be used. We do not want people going to the wrong place, so there is a balance to be struck, but the Environment Agency is happy to talk to my hon. Friend in more detail.

Carlisle is one of the many areas in England that will be receiving investment this year. I am therefore proud to share that in delivering on the Government’s plan for change, we are investing a record £2.65 billion over two years in the construction of new flood schemes and the repair and maintenance of existing ones. With that funding, 1,000 flood schemes have been supported or will continue to be supported, helping to protect 52,000 more homes and businesses. Maintenance of existing flood defences is also being prioritised, ensuring that a further 14,500 properties will have their expected level of protection maintained or restored. In total, 66,500 properties will benefit from that funding, helping to secure jobs, deliver growth and protect against economic damage.

We recognise that many flood defence projects have stalled over time, due partly to an outdated formula for allocating money. We have therefore made available £140 million from the £2.65 billion investment programme, which has been prioritised for 29 projects that are ready for delivery, ensuring that nearby communities are protected as soon as possible. The full list of schemes to receive funding in 2025-26 was announced on 31 March and can be found online, and we will of course continue to invest in new defences.

Because we have inherited flood assets that are in the poorest condition on record following years of under-investment, 3,000 of the Environment Agency’s 38,000 high-consequence assets have been left below the required condition. In a November 2023 report, the National Audit Office recognised that increasing investment in operating and maintaining existing flood defences was critical to reducing the frequency and impact of flooding. As such, we are taking decisive action to fix the foundations, giving communities confidence that flood defences will protect them. To support that action, we are re-prioritising £108 million of investment in repairing and restoring critical assets: £36 million in 2024-25 to target repairs towards assets damaged in storms last winter and ongoing flood events; and a further £72 million this year to continue repairs and ensure that assets are as resilient and reliable as possible, and that they operate as expected in flood events.

In addition, the environmental land management schemes present a valuable opportunity to support flooding and coastal erosion risk management aims through direct funding of actions, providing a revenue stream to support landowners working with EA capital schemes, and indirect actions, which will lead to reduced watercourse maintenance requirements and increase the lifespan of our assets. I would like to reassure my hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle that the EA actively monitors aggregate and vegetation throughout the year for critical locations that are trigger points, and when those trigger levels are met, gravel and vegetation is removed when timing allows. If she has any concerns about those levels —if she believes they have already been met—that can be another conversation to continue with the Environment Agency.

Protecting communities around the country from flooding is one of the Secretary of State’s five core priorities, which is why we set up the flood resilience taskforce to provide oversight of national and local flood resilience and preparedness. That taskforce brings together Ministers from DEFRA, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Cabinet Office and the Department for Transport—the fact that we have so many Ministers in the same room to discuss flood resilience demonstrates the priority given to that issue across Government. It marks a new approach to preparing for flooding by bringing together representatives from national, regional and local government, the devolved Administrations, the emergency services, charities and environmental interest groups. I was pleased to chair the taskforce when it met on 5 February to look at learning from flooding since last September and longer-term funding and investment reform. The discussions from that meeting are now being taken forward through collaborative action groups of taskforce members, and we are looking at flood warnings, flood recovery and flood insurance. The next taskforce meeting will take place in May 2025, where the action groups will report back on their work to improve flood resilience and better protect and support vulnerable communities, because flood warnings are frequently mentioned as a concern after flooding events.

We are also providing vital funding to support greater resilience for farmers and rural communities. The Government announced last month an additional £16 million boost to the internal drainage board fund, which has been bolstered to a total of £91 million from the previously allocated £75 million. It will enable investment in modernising and upgrading IDB assets and waterways to ensure they are fit for the future. More than 400,000 hectares of agricultural land and around 91,000 homes and businesses across England are expected to benefit from the IDB fund.

Turning to the sustainable farming initiative, more than half of all farmed land is now being managed in environmental land management schemes. That includes more than 37,000 live SFI agreements undertaking a range of actions, including to strengthen natural flood defences. We announced on 11 March that the current SFI budget had been fully allocated, and we will continue to support farmers to transition to more sustainable farming models, including through the thousands of existing SFI agreements over the coming years, and a reformed SFI offer.

Now is the right time for a reset of SFI, supporting farmers, delivering for nature and targeting public funds fairly and effectively towards priorities for food, farming and nature. The Government will work with the farming sector to prioritise funding for future years, so that we can target those who will benefit most before reopening to new applicants. There will be a new and improved SFI offer, with details to follow in summer after the spending review. The improved SFI scheme will be another step in this Government’s new deal for farmers to support growth and farm profitability. If my hon. Friend would like, I can share details highlighting her interest in providing views to the officials responsible.

Looking ahead, I have set out plans to consult on a new strategic vision for floods investment. I am pleased to say that a consultation on reforms to the funding formula will be launching shortly this spring. We will ensure that the challenges facing businesses and rural and coastal communities are adequately taken into account when delivering flood protection. Flood schemes proceeding in 2026, 2027 and beyond will continue to be subject to the annual regional flood and coastal committees consenting process, with local elected representation, and to decisions from the upcoming spending review.

[Matt Rodda]

I appreciate the work that the Minister is doing in this area. She is proving herself to be an excellent Minister who is willing to listen to those of us with concerns about flooding. As part of the review, is it possible to investigate the role of locks and weirs in river catchments and how they are maintained and operated when rivers are at a high level? Concerns have been raised with me by local residents that some weirs or locks—this is an issue within the community, which I have not yet been able to fully check out—may have been opened at times of high flow, when perhaps it might have been better for the water to have been managed in a different way. Is it possible to have further consultation on that?

I understand that in some catchments there are different ways of locks and weirs being managed, and it may be that there is no national standard. On the Thames, there are often lock-keepers who are paid employees, but with some tributaries, it is not as organised as that, and it may be individual landowners who are responsible. In our area, the way that the Kennet—it is a large tributary, but still only a tributary—is managed is different from and less professionalised than the Thames, and concerns have been expressed about that.

[Emma Hardy]

I thank my hon. Friend for his thoughtful contribution as always and for his interest in this area. The management of locks and weirs probably does not come into the scope of the flooding formula review, but I have heard the point he is making, and I will talk to officials about whether the management of locks is taken into account with flood plans and how that is managed consistently around the country. I will write back to him on that, if that would be useful.

The Government’s record two-year investment in our flood defences will better protect communities across the country from flooding. It will also boost economic growth in local communities by protecting businesses, delivering new jobs and supporting a stable economy in the face of the increasing risk of flooding as a result of climate change.

Through our plan for change, this Government will deliver a decade of national renewal and economic growth, and we are committed to ensuring that communities are better protected from flooding in the first place. We will continue to deliver and repair flood defences, improve drainage systems and develop natural flood management schemes. As ever, the emergency services, the Environment Agency, local authorities, voluntary organisations and Government Departments stand ready to support affected people in any future flooding event, and I pay tribute to them all. It is a personal priority and a privilege to be the Minister responsible for flooding, and I will continue working to ensure that this country is more resilient to floods.

Water (Special Measures) Bill [Lords]

Debate between Emma Hardy and Matt Rodda

Report stage
Tuesday 28th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

As I have mentioned, I am a huge fan of our chalk streams. The hon. Member is right to point out that the much-lauded water restoration fund that some Members are so keen to talk about was established in November 2022, yet 18 months later the grand total of the number of projects supported by it was zero.

A number of hon. Members have also put forward suggestions to improve information and data sharing more broadly. The hon. Member for Beaconsfield (Joy Morrissey) has put her name to some of these amendments. Although the Government do not think it necessary to bring forward legislation in this space, we are actively considering ways of making data more accessible to the public through non-legislative means. This includes information on water companies’ performance and data on local sewer networks in map form, which must be made available free of charge under the Water Industry Act 1991.

[Matt Rodda (Reading Central) (Lab)]

Will the Minister give way?

[Emma Hardy]

This is going to be my last one.

[Matt Rodda]

I am grateful to the Minister for giving way. Her comments on this point will be welcomed by many of our local residents. Will she provide further information about the greater powers for Ofwat?

[Emma Hardy]

This Bill will, of course, empower Ofwat to take necessary action where it finds wrongdoing, including through changes to remuneration under clause 1. I know my hon. Friend cares a lot about this.

Farmland Flooding

Debate between Emma Hardy and Matt Rodda

Wednesday 15th January 2025 Westminster Hall

[Matt Rodda]

rose—

[Emma Hardy]

I will give way to my hon. Friend the Member for Reading Central (Matt Rodda) and then to the hon. Member for Glastonbury and Somerton (Sarah Dyke), but I have only six minutes.

[Matt Rodda]

The Minister makes an excellent point. In my area, a major flood prevention scheme in Caversham, which is part of the Greater Reading area, has unfortunately been deferred. However, there is some good news regarding the point that she and the hon. Member for Broadland and Fakenham (Jerome Mayhew) made about landowners working together. I visited Kennet meadows and Fobney meadows, and saw three different landowners working together to rewild a flood meadow to enhance the land’s ability to soak up water. Much can be done if central Government and local government play a leading role in co-ordinating work with landowners, and build a team approach at a local level.

[Emma Hardy]

That sounds like an excellent example. I note that the hon. Member for Glastonbury and Somerton intervened earlier on the hon. Member for Broadland and Fakenham so, if she does not mind, I will use the last five minutes of the debate to respond to some of the comments made earlier.

We are looking at reviewing the flood funding formula, which was brought up by farmers during many of the visits that I made when I was in a shadow ministerial position. I want to work with all the various stakeholders on that, and I recognise that, in my opinion, at the moment the flood funding formula disincentivises investment in rural areas. I want to have a serious look at that.

I hate to see an outbreak of, almost, unity—although that is nice to have sometimes—but there is much love among Labour Members for natural flood management, so I welcome the comments made by the hon. Member for Broadland and Fakenham. The Government champion and support natural flood management, and I am keen to explore how we can encourage more of it, throughout England. I have therefore convened a roundtable on Monday to explore opportunities and challenges in the delivery of natural flood management. It will include experts and those directly involved in the projects, and will help inform our delivery of natural flood management. I look forward to hearing from farming representatives as part of that discussion, and have invited the National Farmers Union, the Nature Friendly Farming Network and the Country Land and Business Association. I am keen to hear how their views can feed into Government work.

As has been mentioned, various natural flood management methods can be used to protect flooded farmland, such as planting winter cover crops, soil management, matching grazing density to the capability of the land, avoiding growing certain crops on steep slopes, and blocking drainage ditches to slow down run-off and create wetland habitats. There will be measures that benefit flood mitigation in all three of the environmental land management schemes: the sustainable farming incentive, countryside stewardship and landscape recovery.

Financial Inclusion: Rural Areas

Debate between Emma Hardy and Matt Rodda

Wednesday 11th December 2024 Westminster Hall

[Emma Hardy]

Absolutely. Link is covered by the Financial Conduct Authority, which has a duty to promote growth. The criteria on which it bases its decision include whether there is a bank branch remaining, the population size, the number of shops on the high street, the distance to the nearest bank branch, the public transport links and the vulnerability of the population. I urge Members to appeal if they find themselves unsuccessful the first time around.

Alongside access to cash, I know that constituents are concerned about challenges in accessing in-person banking. As has been highlighted in this debate, that is particularly an issue for individuals living in rural areas, where in-person services are less easily accessed than in urban areas.

[Matt Rodda]

Does the Minister agree that an important point is that disabled and vulnerable people want to speak to another person? Getting advice and guidance from a qualified person who represents the bank and can help them with their banking is something that particularly concerns my constituents. It can also apply to small businesses, many of which want the ability to engage with bank staff to discuss their own financial matters.

[Emma Hardy]

I absolutely agree that that is important. On the issue of vulnerability, sometimes in-person services are a way in which financial coercion can be identified, which is always a huge concern. That is why the banking hubs are so important and the Government are committed to rolling them out. It is completely in character for my hon. Friend to highlight the need to support vulnerable people in his constituency.

My hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury is working closely with the industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK, which will provide individuals who need face-to-face support with critical banking services. As I say, I am personally hugely supportive of the banking hubs.

We are taking further steps to ensure that individuals can access the financial services and products that they need. Last week—I was very excited about this—the Government announced a financial inclusion strategy to further tackle the problems of financial inclusion. The strategy will be supported by a committee that the Economic Secretary convened for the first time last week. The committee brings together consumer groups and the financial sector to consider a range of barriers to inclusion for excluded groups, focusing on key policy areas such as access to banking, insurance and affordable credit, another huge problem for vulnerable people.

It is clear that there are significant challenges that need addressing. A quarter of adults have less than £100 in savings. Over a million adults are unbanked. There is a reported £2 billion of unmet need for credit, and over 8 million people are struggling with financial debt. Under the financial inclusion strategy, the committee will be working with consumer groups and industry to develop a strategy, considering a range of barriers.

To tackle the long-term issues effectively, we need to listen to the voice of experts. That is why we have convened this group, which will be tasked with drawing on relevant expertise across the sector and on lived experience. We will also be listening to people on the ground, because this will require a joined-up approach across Government, the financial services sector and frontline organisations. We will be engaging widely on this agenda to ensure that the strategy considers a wide range of frontline perspectives.

The strategy will be published next year, following extensive work by the Financial Inclusion Committee to consider the barriers to access and solutions to address them. It is important that we take the time to get this right and seek input from those who are most affected by the issue of financial exclusion. That is why the Government have made clear our commitment to going further in tackling it. While that work is in its early stages, I know that the Economic Secretary recognises its importance to our constituents and will keep the House updated as it progresses.

I thank the hon. Member for Frome and East Somerset again. It has been a pleasure to participate in her first Westminster Hall debate, and I thank all hon. Members for participating. There is a lot of support in this room for banking services, and a recognition of the importance of face-to-face services and access to cash. It is crucial for everybody in our society to have access to the financial services they need, regardless of where they live.

Question put and agreed to.