Local councils across England have issued a stark warning that vulnerable communities face "catastrophic flooding and economic devastation" unless the Government urgently provides more funding for vital flood protection maintenance.
Cost-Shifting Creates Crisis for Local Taxpayers
Senior figures in local government have stated that due to recent funding cuts and a re-prioritisation of support by the Environment Agency, the financial burden for maintaining flood defences is now falling on district councils. This means local taxpayers will have to foot the bill through increased council tax levies.
The District Councils' Network (DCN) highlighted that annual levies paid to the 112 Internal Drainage Boards in England, which protect nearly a tenth of the country's landmass, have surged by 32% to £52.4 million in the four years leading to 2025/26.
Paul Redgate, chairman of the Internal Drainage Boards Interest Group, condemned the move. "The withdrawal of funding for so many stretches of river amounts to cost-shunting from central government to already squeezed local taxpayers," he said.
Somerset at Risk of Repeat 2014 Floods
Analysis of the Environment Agency's funding changes has identified specific areas at severe risk. There are fears that Somerset could see a repeat of the devastating 2014 floods, which affected 10,400 hectares of land.
Vulnerable locations include property near Somerton, areas on the River Cary near Glastonbury, on the River Brue, and near Langport on the River Yeo. The core issue, according to drainage experts, is that man-made channels are becoming clogged due to a lack of maintenance, drastically reducing their capacity to carry flood water.
Innes Thomson, chief executive of the Association of Drainage Authorities, expressed concern: "There's been a gradual reduction in maintenance carried out by the Environment Agency over the past 15 or 20 years, leaving councils with a significant bill to put things right."
Devastating Choices for Essential Services
The DCN warns that the massive bill for these protection measures will force councils to make impossible choices. Even if council tax is raised by the maximum permitted amount, authorities will have to cut other essential local services to cover the rising costs of flood defence maintenance.
DCN chairman Richard Wright urged the Government to act: "The sums of money required are miniscule for national government – but rising costs can be devastating for individual district councils... The overall costs of flooding through damage to property and devastation of local economies would be enormous to the nation."
While the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) pointed to a record £10.5 billion flooding investment commitment by 2036 and over £100 million reprioritised for urgent maintenance, local leaders insist this does not cover the immediate and escalating crisis they now face.
