The chancellor will ‘double’ funding for flood defences to £5.2bn over five years in this week’s Budget, the Treasury has said.
Officials said the cash will build 2,000 new flood and coastal defence schemes and will better protect 336,000 properties in England over the next six years.
The Government’s current £2.6bn into its flood defence investment programme, ends in 2021.
The claim that the new cash represents a ‘doubling’ of existing funding does not take account of inflation.
Treasury officials added that it puts the Government ‘on track’ to meet the investment level recommended by the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), and will cut national flood risk in England by 11% by 2027.
However, the Government's National Infrastructure Strategy, which is its official response to the NIC's National Infrastructure Assessment, has been delayed. The NIC released its assessment two years ago.
Officials said chancellor Rishi Sunak will also announce a £120m Winter Defence Repair Fund to repair assets that were damaged during the recent storms.
Mr Sunak said: ‘This Budget will be about delivering on our promises to the British people, and levelling up all parts of the UK is a big part of that.
‘Communities up and down Britain have been hit hard by the floods this winter - so it is right that we invest to protect towns, families, and homes across the UK.’
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