Government Rejects Plans To Make new Homes More Flood Resilient

South Lakeland MP Tim Farron has labelled the government's decision to reject a Lib Dem amendment to the Housing Bill as "short-sighted and counter-productive". The Lib Dem amendment would have increased flood protection for new homes.

The plans were included in a Liberal Democrat amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill which had cross-party support in the House of Lords. Despite the Lords winning the vote on the issue, the Government has chosen to overrule it in the Commons.

The plans would have put stronger requirements on developers to build homes that are better protected from flooding, by requiring them to use sustainable drainage systems before being given access to the water network. This would reduce the risk of surface water flooding.

Tim said: "Here in South Lakeland we have seen first-hand the terrible impact which flooding can have. This makes the government's decision to reject this amendment all the more disappointing - The Conservatives had an opportunity to make newly built homes more flood resilient, but they refused to take it.

"With flooding likely to become increasingly common because of climate change, we need to do everything we can to make sure new homes are built with strong protections. The plans that Liberal Democrats are campaigning for would force developers to think harder about the way they are building new homes. But the Government is ignoring this need and letting developers off the hook. If access to the water network was conditional on putting in sustainable drainage systems, it would be a huge improvement in flood protection.

"The government must take serious action now to prevent flooding in the future, rather than waiting for another disaster like that we experienced this winter. The government's decision to reject this amendment was short-sighted and counter-productive."