Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the distribution of flood relief grant-aid to (a) homes and (b) businesses affected by the flooding caused by Storm Babet in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich constituency.

I extend my sympathy to all those affected by the impacts of Storm Babet, flooding is a devastating experience for anyone. I also recognise the efforts of councils and emergency responders and thank them for their ongoing work in affected areas.

The Secretary of State activated the Flood Recovery Framework on Wednesday 25 October. The activation of the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework will be reviewed following implementation by local authorities.

For the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework activation, eligible areas are those upper and lower tier authority areas:

• Reporting over 50 internally flooded properties (any combination of households and businesses) at their Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) level; and
• With properties flooded as a direct result of Storm Babet; and
• With properties flooded between the dates of 19 October 2023 and 25 October 2023.

East Suffolk Council, Mid Suffolk Council and Ipswich Council are eligible for the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework and have until 25 January 2024 to provide information on impacts to my department to support payment processes.