“Communities at risk deserve certainty from government.”
The committee found that funding for flooding fluctuates year-on-year. Funding was initially cut during the last parliament and only increased after the winter floods of 2013-14.

The government has committed to spending £2.3bn on building new defences and to protect spending on maintaining existing defences – but the EAC warned they were “sceptical” the government would reach its target of protecting 300,000 properties, saying it was based on an optimistic forecast that assumed the greatest efficiency in spending decisions.
The committee also said it was surprised to learn the extra £700m funding for flood defences announced in this year’s Budget was based on a “political calculation” and may not be allocated with the same strict economic criteria as the £2.3bn.

The report said that could lead to inefficiencies in flood investments, poor decision-making and outcomes that were potentially unfair to some regions. …

… The condition of critical flood defences is in decline, according to the committee.

Ms Creagh said: “The government needs to put money into the upkeep of existing flood defences as well as investing in new defences. Failure to do so can have terrible consequences for residents and businesses when defences fail.

“Any decline in the condition of critical flood defences represents an unacceptable risk to local communities in flood prone areas. We urge the government to go beyond its current target and aim to have virtually all its critical assets meeting the Environment Agency’s required condition by 2019.”

The committee said it was concerned the government does not know how prepared local authorities are for flooding, with Ms Creagh adding that local authorities “are not receiving the support they need to prepare for, and mitigate, the impacts of flooding”.