Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Environment Agency on increasing the number of flood defence projects.

The Government announced in March 2020 a record £5.2 billion investment over 6 years in flood and coastal erosion schemes to better protect communities across England. Since April 2021, over £1.5 billion has been invested in flood defence projects across the country and over 67,000 properties have been better protected from flooding through over 200 completed schemes (as of September 2023).

The programme of schemes that make up the current investment programme is reviewed and refreshed annually as projects progress. This allows for flexibility to manage change and introduce new schemes or urgent works if necessary. Ministers are working with the Environment Agency to review the programme in the light of the impacts of inflation. More information will be available in due course.