Floods Minister and Environment Agency hold further meeting to bolster flood response and recovery
Source: gov.uk (2025-01-07)

Minister Hardy and Philip Duffy discussed the response to flooding in the East Midlands, Lincolnshire and across the country.

Floods Minister Emma Hardy convened a further meeting with Environment Agency Chief Executive Philip Duffy this afternoon to discuss the nation’s response to the recent flooding events.

During the meeting, the Floods Minister was briefed on the current situation on the ground, and the response being led by the Environment Agency and the emergency services. She also discussed the further action being taken to protect communities over the next few days with minor flooding possible in some parts of the country continuing into Thursday. Together, they discussed how to continue to support the collective efforts of the Environment Agency, emergency services, and local authorities in responding to flooding.

Protecting communities around the country from flooding and coastal erosion is one of the Government’s priorities. It’s why £2.4 billion is being invested over the next two years to bolster the nation’s resilience, which is vital if we are to protect homes and business across the country.

The meeting comes as a mixture of snowmelt and saturated catchments has brought further disruption to parts of England, particularly in the Midlands, following the heavy rainfall over the New Year that saw significant river and surface water flooding across the North West of England and Yorkshire.

Since New Year’s Eve, the Environment Agency estimates that, in total across England, more than 41,000 properties have been protected but at least 300 properties have sadly flooded, with reports of further flooding being investigated.

The Environment Agency continues to monitor the forecast and impacts on river levels. Its message to the public remains to check their flood risk, sign up for free flood warnings and keep up to date with the latest situation.

Floods Minister Emma Hardy said:

This afternoon I held an urgent meeting with the Environment Agency about the ongoing flooding incident.

My sympathies go out to the people, businesses and communities impacted by the recent flooding across the country.

I want to express my heartfelt thanks for the vital work that the Environment Agency and emergency services are doing to keep people safe. People must continue to follow their advice and sign up for flood warnings.

This Government is working at pace to accelerate the building of flood defences through our new Floods Resilience Taskforce and investing £2.4 billion, so we can continue to protect people and their homes.

Chief Executive Philip Duffy said:

My thoughts are with the people affected by flooding over the last week. We will continue our work to support flooded communities, and I want to thank teams from the Environment Agency and our partners for their tireless efforts this week.

With the risk from floods increasing due to climate change, I want to reassure people that we are intensifying our efforts to repair and maintain flood defences and work with communities nationwide to prepare for future wet weather.

The Government is working in lockstep with the Environment Agency to enhance preparations as we navigate the winter season and is swiftly integrating the insights from recent floods into the new Floods Resilience Taskforce. The taskforce is speeding up the delivery of flood defences and enhancing our national resilience to protect communities from extreme weather conditions.

Environment Agency teams continue to be out on the ground, operating flood defences, taking action to reduce the impact of flooding, issuing flood warnings and supporting those communities affected.

People can check their flood risk (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fcheck-flood-risk&data=05%7C02%7CCalum.Finlay%40defra.gov.uk%7C62b1545247e0454e84e708dd2f3fa008%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638718672488959930%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=dxjeqL0edxclz9aj0UaULm0lKpgVmIoHoANOgc1jn%2FM%3D&reserved=0), sign up for free flood warnings and keep up to date with the latest situation, and follow @EnvAgency on X (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2FEnvAgency&data=05%7C02%7CCalum.Finlay%40defra.gov.uk%7C62b1545247e0454e84e708dd2f3fa008%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638718672488986405%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=7O2TthoRJylVH%2BwqfruL%2FJ%2BKA%2BxVLZOUNuOkCLtkU2A%3D&reserved=0) for the latest flood updates.