Even so, one new home in every 14 built in 2013-14 — the most recent year for which data are available — was constructed on land that has a significant chance of flooding, either from a river or the sea, according to FT analysis of official figures.

As 138,000 homes were built in total, this suggests that 9,700 properties were built on floodplains, with housing built on more than 90 hectares of land that is at risk of inundation.

The methodology changed in 2013-14 but earlier data indicate a fairly constant level of construction on floodplains, at about 7 per cent of total housebuilding.

John Healey, Labour’s shadow housing minister, called on the Conservatives to “make sure planning policy keeps up” with climate change. Despite the UK’s housing shortage government planning should take the increasing risk of flooding into account when deciding where homes should be built, he said.
A government spokeswoman said it had “put in place strong safeguards to stop inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding”.

The final decision on whether to grant permission for construction on floodplains lay with local councils, which receive advice from the Environment Agency, she added.

After weeks of heavy rain from winter storms Desmond and Eva, KPMG, the professional services firm, said the total economic impact on the region could be £5.8bn. KPMG said its figure included £2.6bn-£3.3bn of losses and £2bn needed to boost flood defences.

The government was facing further pressure after the Federation of Small Businesses said about 75,000 smaller businesses at risk of flooding had found it difficult to find flood insurance and 50,000 had been refused cover nationally.

The FSB said it would be pressing the government to reverse their exclusion from the government’s flood programme, Flood Re, which guarantees affordable insurance.”