You may recall that back in August I wrote to the Secretary of State to demand that the Government support Burrow Beck by fully funding the scheme flood defence scheme identified by the Environment Agency, support property level measures for residents and small businesses, and fund urgent temporary measures while more significant works are built.

I have not received a response from Rebecca Pow MP, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs – sadly it appears the Secretary of State was too busy to respond directly.

Her full response is below, but I’m deeply disappointed that they in essence they will not fully fund the flood storage area, which is the stronger of the available options to prevent flooding in the long term, as I and South Lancaster Flood Action Group have called for. They say they won’t proceed with this as it would leave “a residual flood risk”. I find this to be completely backwards thinking!

I am pleased that the Flood Action Group remain committed to engaging with DEFRA and the EA on this, even though the government themselves admit that what remains are ‘more modest interventions’.

The Government seem to have forgotten what the words investment and prevention even mean, but I will keep pushing for better funding and more comprehensive long term solutions to the constant flooding that Lancaster continues to experience.