Flood Control: Unitary Councils
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that unitary authorities have the (a) powers and (b) resources to develop effective strategic flooding plans.
Answered by Emma Hardy
The Flood and Water Management Act 2010 requires lead local flood authorities – which include unitary authorities – to develop, maintain, apply and monitor a strategy for local flood risk management in its area.
Local authorities receive revenue funding to deliver local services, including local flood risk management, through the Local Government Finance Settlement. For 2025-26 this makes available over £69 billion, a 6.8% cash terms increase on 2024-2025.
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