Government 'blowing smoke in our eyes' over £8bn flood defence pledge say Shrewsbury campaigners
Businesses and residents affected by flooding in Shrewsbury say an £8 billion government flood defence programme announced this week lacks clarity - and could actually be a funding cut.
On Monday (June 16) the Government's Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) said it would announce a multi-billion pound programme of funding for flood defence schemes which it said amounted to the "largest flood defence investment programme in history."
The department says it plans to spend £8bn on flood schemes over the next ten years, with £4.2 billion committed to its flooding programme over the next three years to 2028/29.
In the statement, the Government said spending would be focused on capital projects such as building new defences, as well as repairing and maintaining existing ones. The new measures are set to take effect in April 2026.
But campaigners from Shrewsbury, which is regularly flooded out from the rising waters of the River Severn and its tributaries, say the announcement could in fact see spending reduced on new schemes - and have accused the Government of a lack of clarity over its flooding measures.
