Written questions by Argar.

Food and Rural Affairs, what additional (a) funding and (b) support his Department has provided to (i) communities and (ii) local authorities in Leicestershire to help tackle the impact of recent flooding.

Protecting communities around the country from flooding is one of the Secretary of State’s five core priorities. To ensure we protect the country from the devastating impacts of flooding, the Government will invest £2.4 billion in 2024/25 and 2025/26 to improve flood resilience by maintaining, repairing and building flood defences. In addition, the Government’s new Floods Resilience Taskforce sets out a new approach to preparing for flooding by working cross-government and with external stakeholders. It plans to meet again in January 2025 and will discuss the recent flooding. During the flooding incident, the Environment Agency (EA) has informed the public about flood risk; operated flood risk assets to prevent or reduce the severity of flooding; supported authorities to pump flood water away from properties and infrastructure; and worked with partners to coordinate the emergency response. Going forward, the EA will contribute to the Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland Recovery Cell; continue to deploy officers to affected communities to assess the impacts of flooding to properties and businesses; and continue to work with others to identify further opportunities to reduce flood risk in Leicestershire and support the resilience of communities to flooding.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the number of developments on flood risks in Leicestershire.

The Government has committed to ensure we are building more high-quality, well-designed and sustainable homes, and creating places that increase climate resilience and promote nature recovery. Flood risk is an important consideration in the planning system. The Environment Agency (EA) is a statutory consultee in the planning process on flood risk matters, in particular flooding from rivers. On a strategic level, the EA actively engages with Local Planning Authorities’ (LPAs) Local Plan making process to ensure that new developments will be in line with the National Planning Policy Framework’s requirements on flood risk. The EA ensures the LPA has the most up-to-date flooding information and data to make informed decisions regarding which locations they choose for significantly sized new development, using the principle that those areas at least risk of flooding should be chosen first.

Food and Rural Affairs, what the Environment Agency's budget for flood prevention and mitigation was in Leicestershire in the 2023-24 financial year.

The Environment Agency (EA) has spent the following in Leicestershire on flood prevention and mitigation: Investment in capital projects in Leicestershire in 2023/24 included:£223k on Wood Brook and Tributaries Flood Risk Management scheme to develop the business case.£59k on Quorn House recondition work to repair flood bank low spots.£48k on Leicester Flood Risk Management Scheme conveyance works to complete handover of asset to the local authority.£25k on River Soar Flood Risk Management Scheme to close-out the project which cannot proceed due to it being economically unviable.£20k on new flow gauging on Rothley Brook at Rothley for improved flood warning and modelling. Additionally, in 23/24 the EA were allocated £2.9 million revenue funding for flood prevention and mitigation in Leicestershire. This is for the EAs work on asset maintenance and repairs, and in-river maintenance such as vegetation clearance and de-silting.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the (a) economic impact of the bluetongue restrictions on affected farmers and (b) animal health impact of the bluetongue restriction.

Government recognises that keepers and businesses can be affected not only by the impacts of bluetongue disease on animals, but also by disease control measures. That is why Defra seeks to minimise these burdens as far as practically possible, easing them where safe to do so using exemptions under licenses, whilst maintaining the integrity and efficacy of measures intended to mitigate the risk of disease spread. The restricted zone currently in force has contained and slowed the spread of disease and prevented disease circulation in the areas of the country with the highest cattle and sheep density. Defra are aware of the significant challenges that affected farmers and businesses have faced, and we continue to work closely with industry representatives. Restrictions remain under continuous review, including their likely economic impact, and any decisions are based on the latest scientific evidence and veterinary advice.