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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the effect of riparian ownership laws on the number and extent of cases of flooding; and whether there are plans to transfer ownership of culverts with the potential to cause flooding to (a) the Environment Agency or (b) local authorities.

The government has no plans to undertake an assessment of the effect of riparian ownership laws on the number and extent of cases of flooding. There is a common law duty on owners of land to keep watercourses clear of anything that could cause an obstruction, either on their own land or downstream if it is washed away. Land owners have the same responsibilities for the upkeep of a culverted watercourse as if it were an open watercourse.

There are no plans to transfer ownership of culverts to the Environment Agency or local authorities. The Environment Agency, Lead Local Flood Authorities and Internal Drainage Boards have powers to require landowners to maintain the flow of their watercourses.