£800 million for flood Prevention Announced

Gordon Brown has promised to increase funding for flood prevention from £600 million to £800 million.

Speaking during today's Prime Minister's Questions, he said:

"To increase the flood prevention budget from £600 million to £800 million at a time when we have other priorities to meet is a sign of our determination to deal with proper defences against floods."

In addition to the extra funding, Mr Brown said that the Government would help flood victims not covered by insurance and provide special assistance to local authorities. He also said that he would look into a proposal that would make developers, rather than homeowners, responsible for insurance against flood damage.

Mr Brown first announced the £14 million support package for flooded areas when he visited some of the worst affected places on Saturday. An estimated 31,000 households have been hit by flooding in cities such as Doncaster, Hull and Sheffield, with insurance claims expected to exceed £1.5 billion.