Stuart Anderson MP has demanded full transparency on government investment in flood defences, amid media reports that it has misled the public over its claims to be spending a record amount of money on them.
It has been revealed that the government is set to spend less than the previous government on building new flood defences on an annual basis, despite its claims to the contrary. Recently, Floods Minister Emma Reynolds claimed that the government is making a "huge £10.5 billion investment into new flood defences."
However, this figure has been disputed. Flooded People UK have stated that it conflates investment in both revenue and capital spending with respect to the government’s announcements up until 2026.
Only the latter represents investment in new flood defences. Moreover, the government’s announcements mask cuts to annual spending by spreading commitments over long periods.
The government has proposed using 50% of its capital budgets on maintenance. As a result, this will lower the amount of funding that is available to invest in new flooding defence schemes.
The government has announced an investment of £7.9 billion over ten years. On average, this equates to £790 million per year. In contrast, figures obtained directly from Defra show that average capital investment for the five years between 2021 and 2026 had stood at £898 million.
This means an average annual investment of £760 million between 2026 and 2036 would represent an absolute cut of just over 12% in annual expenditure. When adjusted for inflation, average capital investment stood at £769 million between 2021 and 2026 in 2021 values.
This means that an average capital investment of £790 million would amount to just £578 million in 2021. This would represent a 25% decrease in real terms. This is despite increased flooding risk across the UK.
One in every four properties is set to be at risk by 2040 - causing £2.4 billion in damages every year today and rising to £3.6bn by 2050. In the first six months of 2025 alone, claims for weather-related damage to homes and possessions reached £424 million.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
“Flooding has devastated rural communities like South Shropshire in recent years, causing significant mental and financial stress for residents and businesses alike. Despite the heightened risk of flooding, this research from Flooded People UK has shown how the new government has drastically cut support for flood-hit communities by making real-terms cuts in investment and spreading it over a much longer period. This means that there will be much less funding available for new flood defence schemes. The government needs to be much more transparent with our local communities about this situation and take urgent action to match the last government’s record level of investment.”
Director of Flooded People UK Louis Ramirez said:
"Flooding is being supercharged by development in the floodplain, poor infrastructure, and climate change to the point of threatening the viability of hundreds of towns and villages. The cuts to flood defence budgets signal the abandonment of entire communities by a government that is giving up the fight while there is still time to turn things around. These cuts must be urgently reversed to give the country a fighting chance against rising flood risk.”
