Select committee: Environmental Audit Committee
Recommendation 12
4th Report – Flood resilience in England
Published 13 Oct 2025
Environmental Audit Committee Flood resilience in England All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Government should commission a national audit of flood resilience assets by 2026, encompassing both engineered and nature-based infrastructure. This audit should identify the type, location, ownership, condition, and maintenance responsibilities of all relevant assets, including those owned or managed by third parties. The process should be led by Defra in collaboration with the Environment Agency and other relevant bodies, and should draw on lessons from the National Framework for Water Resources. The audit must be regularly updated and designed to inform strategic planning, guide investment, and improve coordination between local and national actors. (Recommendation, Paragraph 51)
From: Environmental Audit Committee, 4th Report – Flood resilience in England (HC 550), 13 October 2025
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 23 December 2025 (deadline 13 December 2025).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government says it shares the committee's view on the importance of flood resilience, agrees with some recommendations, and in some cases notes or considers them rather than accepting them, while declining to formalise the Flood Resilience Taskforce's role.
- On resilience standards, the government "notes" the recommendation and "will consider this as part of our existing commitment to explore a long-term target", with "a further statement next year".
- It does not agree to formalise the Flood Resilience Taskforce's role, saying this "would complicate the responsibilities and accountabilities".
- On making SuDS mandatory, it does not commit to commencing Schedule 3, saying improvement "could be achieved" by other means and it "will decide on which course of action to pursue in due course".
- On a statutory duty for Fire and Rescue Services to respond to flooding, it is "assessing the case", with the work "planned to conclude in summer 2026".