Flood Defences: Investment - 17th March 2026

Here are the climate-related sections of speeches by MPs during the Commons debate Flood Defences: Investment.

Full text: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2026-03-17/debates/26031750000013/FloodDefencesInvestment

Emma Hardy (Labour)

As well as investing £2.65 billion in flood defences in our first two years, and funding actions to make farmland more resilient to the effects of flooding and climate change, we moved quickly once in Government to establish a flood resilience taskforce to provide oversight of national and local flood resilience and preparedness.

To name just a few, £8 million will be invested in the Pevensey bay to Eastbourne coastal management scheme, helping to protect over 18,000 properties at risk from coastal flooding; £37 million will be invested into the second phase of the “Our City Our River” scheme, a major flood alleviation and regeneration programme along the River Derwent in Derby; and in the north-west, £15 million will be invested in the Preston and South Ribble flood risk management scheme. The scheme is designed to reduce flood risk and provide protection for around 5,000 homes and businesses and also includes measures to address climate change, enhance local environments, and support growth and regeneration in the surrounding communities.

Looking beyond 2026-27, the new flood defence investment programme will benefit 840,000 properties over the next 10 years and protect communities across the country from the devastating impacts of climate change. Backed by a record long-term capital investment of £7.9 billion, this will be the largest floods investment programme in history.

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