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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to use natural resources to mitigate drought in (a) urban communities and (b) rural communities and agriculture.

The Government is committed to a twin track approach to improving water supply resilience as set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan and the National Infrastructure Strategy. This involves action to reduce water demand alongside investing in new supply infrastructure where necessary.

The Environment Agency's National Framework for Water Resources, published in March 2020, sets out the strategic water needs for England, and all its regions and sectors, up to 2050 and beyond. The Framework sets out how we will reduce demand, halve leakage rates, develop new supply infrastructure, move water to where it's needed, increase the drought resilience of water supplies and reduce the need for drought measures that can harm the environment. The proposed Environment Act 2021 water demand target would make these demand and leakage reductions statutory.

Informed by the National Framework for Water Resources, five regional water resources groups are producing a set of co-ordinated, cross-sector plans. The plans will take account of the Adaptation Committee’s Climate Change Risk Assessment, used to inform the Government’s National Adaptation Programme. The plans will be consulted on at the end of 2022, with water companies own water resources plans. They will set out how water supply needs are met over at least a 25 year period, further assessing and achieving improved resilience to climate change and droughts.