Alex Cunningham MP, Shadow Floods Minister, responding to the Worsfold Review published by the Environmental Audit Committee today, said:

“Whilst Ministers were boasting about levels of spending on flood defences and relief, the truth was hidden in their own review of Flood and Coastal Management. The Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee is right to highlight how they tried to delay the report and its damaging conclusions.

“The Worsfold Review confirms what Labour have been saying all along.  Cuts to flood defence spending handed out by the Prime Minister from 2010 are having drastic effects and continue to undermine flood defences around the country.  Now the Government – who were forced to increase spending following flood disasters in 2014 and 2015 – is struggling to keep pace with repairs, let alone get ahead of the curve.

“If we are to tackle future flooding, Minsters must drop their complacency and develop a long-term strategy that addresses all aspects of flood risk management including a greater focus on flood prevention.”

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