Flood Review and Defence Motion

This House recognises that:

(1) The United Kingdom has witnessed an increase in the frequency and severity of flooding incidents, posing significant threats to the safety, well-being, and economic stability of its citizens, in which —

(a) England experienced some periods of heavy rain between April 2022 and March 2023, where the majority of the heavy rainfall events occurred in January 2023.

(b) There were significant surface water flooding in August 2022 as a result of heavy rainfall, followed by a long period of hot, dry weather.

(2) The most common forms of flood in England are —

(a) River flooding, which occurs when a water source cannot cope with the water draining into it from the surrounding land. This can happen for example when heavy rain falls on already waterlogged catchments,

(b) Coastal flooding, which occurs from a combination of high tides and stormy conditions, where the coinciding of low atmospheric pressure and high tides may result in tidal surges that can cause serious flooding,

(c) Surface water flooding, which occurs when heavy rainfall overwhelms the drainage capacity of the local area, making it difficult to predict and pinpoint,

(d) Sewer flooding, which occurs when sewers are overwhelmed by heavy rainfall or when they become blocked in which the likelihood of flooding depends on the capacity of local sewerage systems. Such flooding can also lead to the pollution of rivers and land to be contaminated by sewer overflows, and

(e) Groundwater flooding, which occurs when water levels in the ground rise above surface levels, where it is most likely to occur in areas underlain by permeable rocks, called aquifers.

This House further acknowledges that:

(1) Robust flood defense infrastructure is essential to mitigate the impact of flooding, safeguard communities, and protect vital assets, including homes, businesses, and critical infrastructure;

(2) Climate change projections indicate a potential rise in extreme weather events, such as storms, emphasising the urgency to bolster the nation's resilience against flooding;

(3) improvements in flood defense systems are crucial to adapt to evolving climate patterns, prevent loss of life, and minimise the economic and environmental consequences associated with flooding;

(4) The United Kingdom’s current flood management systems are outdated and insufficient to deal with the impacts and insufficient as —

(a) the last review of UK flood management occurred in 2007, under the Pitt Review which was subsequently followed by the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

(5) An estimate of over 4,000 of England’s Flood Defences are analysed to be graded ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ in which —

(a) over 850 under ‘very poor’ ought to be characterised as having severe defects resulting in complete performance failure; and

(b) the remaining over 3,300 under ‘poor condition’ ought to be characterised as having defects resulting in significantly reduced performance.

(6) Local communities hit hard struggle with local authorities of being ill equipped and complacent in addressing storms and subsequent flood defence.

Therefore this House calls on the government to prioritise and invest in the enhancement of England’s flood defenses and risk management, with specific attention to —

(1) Conducting comprehensive assessments and review of current flood defense infrastructure and management practices to identify vulnerabilities and areas in need of improvement to build resilience, including but not limited to —

(a) risk management and assessment of coastal erosion to tackle the growing threat of flooding from rivers, the sea, and surface water as well as coastal erosion, which shall provide —

(i) local nature recovery;

(ii) carbon reduction; and

(iii) greater integrated water management,

(b) flood mapping to understand which places are most at risk and in what circumstances,

(2) Allocating sufficient financial resources to implement state-of-the-art technology and engineering solutions that enhance the effectiveness of existing flood defense systems, including but not limited to —

(a) The requirement of sustainable drainage systems in new developments, whereby they have many benefits such as —

(i) reducing the overall amount of water that ends up in the sewers and storm overflow discharges;

(ii) reducing flood risk;

(iii) preventing pollution from untreated sewage ending up in our waterways;

(iv) boosting biodiversity;

(v) improving local amenities;

(vi) harvesting valuable rainwater for reuse

(vii) reducing the risk of surface water flooding, in regard to soakaways, grassed areas, permeable surfaces, and wetlands.

(3) Collaborating with relevant stakeholders, agencies, local authorities, businesses, and environmental organisations to develop and implement a cohesive and adaptive strategy for flood risk management, including but not limited to —

(a) development control through planning systems to prevent and reduce the risk of new developments and ensure development does not contribute to increased flood risk,

(b) strong and reliable insurance to spread risks and ensure coverage to as many properties as possible to aid householders and businesses in recovery,

(c) well-prepared emergency services and response to help people and communities in danger, and further aid recovery and clean-up, and

(d) the protection of critical infrastructure to avoid secondary impacts associated with flooding in regard to energy, telecommunications, transport and other essential services.

(4) Promoting community awareness and engagement initiatives to educate the public about flood risks, emergency preparedness, and the importance of sustainable land use practices.

(5) Establishing a transparent and accountable system for monitoring, evaluating, and reporting on the progress of flood defense and risk management projects to ensure efficiency and effectiveness.

This Motion was submitted by The Right Honourable Lord Inverness, Spokesperson for Home Affairs and Justice, and Housing, Communities and Local Government on behalf of the Liberal Democrats

Opening Speech:

Deputy Speaker,

The United Kingdom as an island nation in the crux of the Atlantic ocean and North sea is in a precarious position. We have recently endured a series of weather events that have tested the resilience of our communities and our systems, and as climate change continues to affect us, increasingly so will our capabilities. The heavy rains and the subsequent surface water flooding brought about in recent times underscore the urgency of this motion. This is a critical juncture where climate change projections foretell more extreme weather events, which demand a proactive and robust approach to protect our communities and our nation. It's been far too long since a comprehensive review of our flood management systems. Nearly a generation ago was the last flood review conducted, followed by the Flood and Water Management Act in 2010 which is now nearly 14 years old and outdmoded. Now, more than a decade later, we find our defenses outdated and systems ineffective, where thousands of decrepit flood defenses are graded 'poor' or 'very poor'.

Local communities unfortunately bear the brunt of these deficiencies, struggling with ill-equipped local authorities that often fall short in addressing storms and subsequent flood defenses. Which is why our motion importantly calls for greater investment and full renewal in the enhancement of England’s flood defenses and risk management systems. This motion calls on the government to conduct comprehensive assessments and reviews of our current infrastructure and management practices, identifying vulnerabilities and areas in need of improvement. It is imperative that we allocate sufficient funding for state-of-the-art sustainable technology and engineering solutions to enhance the effectiveness of existing flood defense systems. Moreover, collaboration is key. As this is a multifaceted issue, it requires an intersectional approach needing to work with stakeholders, agencies, local authorities, businesses, and environmental organisations to develop a cohesive and adaptive strategy.

This debate will end on Friday 5th January at 10pm GMT.