Flood defence work brought forward

Floods have hit Bocking in Essex this week

Work on a series of flood and coastal defence schemes is to begin ahead of schedule to protect vulnerable towns and cities.

With several areas already suffering the first autumn floods, Environment Minister Elliot Morley said the measures were intended to help home-owners and businesses in areas which are at risk.

But Mr Morley warned the government could offer no guarantees against further floods, and has urged insurers to take improved flood defences into account when calculating premiums.

While we can reduce risk we cannot guarantee floods will not happen

Elliot Morley
Environment Minister

The government has announced an extra £100m to protect vulnerable towns and cities after floods submerged 10,000 homes and caused £1bn of damage last year.

The minister said work had already begun in some, but not all, of the areas hit by last year's floods.

This year, some areas have experienced the normal average October rainfall in just one day.

More than £30m has been earmarked for sea defences in Norfolk and more than £400m per year is now being spent on flood defences in England, Mr Morley said.

Flood facts

An estimated two million homes are at risk of flooding or coastal erosion

Last year's floods caused around £1bn of damage

Rainfall last autumn was up 77%

The Environment Agency says hundreds of millions must be spent on defences

Developers have been urged not to build in vulnerable areas

He warned that despite improved defences, the public should expect more problems.

A recent government study said two million homes were at risk of flooding or coastal erosion.

He said: "Whilst the weather events leading to last year's flooding were clearly unusual, in the early part of this century we can expect more frequent extreme events as a result of climate change.

"We seek to be open and honest about what we can and cannot do, recognising that while we can reduce risk we cannot guarantee floods will not happen, particularly in high-risk areas."

Global warming

Old-fashioned drains and sewers were causing a large part of the problem, he said, and a report into that situation will be issued "in the near future".

Global warming was also blamed.

Last year's flooding followed the worst autumn storms for 300 years

While 10,000 homes were flooded in 2000, some 300,000 were saved through existing defences and "a massive and sustained effort", he said.

Mr Morley has been in touch with insurers to discuss the issue of increased insurance premiums for affected home-owners.

Defence schemes in Shrewsbury, Shropshire; Gowdall in East Yorkshire; and Chichester, West Sussex, have been speeded up since last year.

The Norfolk sea defence project will affect 8.5km of coastline and aim to protect vulnerable holiday parks, beach properties and national and international nature reserves.

Rainfall

A number of other schemes have been planned since last year's floods, which brought devastation to parts of Yorkshire, the Midlands and Kent.

Some £17m is being spent to protect Naburn, near York, more than £5m for the villages of Malton and Norton, North Yorkshire, and £2m for York city centre.

Last year, Malton and Norton were cut off when the river Derwent burst its banks while in York, the river Ouse rose more than 17ft above its normal levels.

Last year's flooding followed the worst autumn storms in the 300 years since records began, with 77% more rain falling than average.