Watchdogs raise alarm over 'critical gaps' in flood prevention

Scotland’s public bodies must face up to “critical gaps” in flood prevention as extreme weather becomes more prevalent, watchdogs have warned.

Storms and heavy rainfall have brought flooding to areas like Angus, Perth and Kinross, and Dumfries and Galloway in recent months. It is thought that almost 400,000 properties could be at risk by 2080.

In a joint call to the Scottish Government, councils and others, Audit Scotland and the Accounts Commission have said the process for allocating funding for major flood schemes is “not fit for purpose”.

The watchdogs warn there is a risk that the action needed to prevent and tackle the harms of flooding will not happen “at the scale and speed needed”.

And leadership, skills and data gaps mean public bodies are holding back progress on protecting communities.

Auditor General Stephen Boyle said: “The Scottish Government and other public bodies must urgently address critical gaps in roles, responsibilities, information and data. Failing to do this risks ambitions to build communities that can better withstand and recover from flooding.

“Whilst there are good examples of the Scottish Government collaborating with councils, communities and other public bodies, this isn’t sufficient given the scale of future risks. It is vital that greater certainty and clarity about the funding available for major flood schemes is provided, with costs and impacts managed and measured, and national agreement on collaborating and engaging with communities secured.”

The watchdogs want improvements to collaboration across the public sector and have highlighted a lack of clarity in roles, responsibilities and funding.

The cost of existing major flood schemes is expected to reach more than £1bn – more than double expected limits. Meanwhile, work on these is taking longer to complete.

In 2015 as many as 40 initiatives were identified as eligible for funding. These were expected to safeguard 15,520 properties at an overcall cost of £350m. However, with only 19 complete and eight abandoned, the projects are now expected to protect only 14,015 addresses, despite the higher price tag.

Andrew Burns, deputy chair of the Accounts Commission, said: “Communities are at the heart of future flood resilience. Whilst there are good examples of the work councils are doing, they face significant challenges. There are gaps in the data they need, uncertainty over funding and a shortage of skilled staff.

“There are inconsistencies in the advice, money and support to enable communities to become both more resilient to flooding events and recover more quickly. These challenges need to be addressed by both local and national government.”

The Scottish Government said work is underway to improve governance and funding processes, adding: “We have also recently provided funding to Sepa [the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency] to improve coastal flooding monitoring and develop a national register of flood and coastal assets.

“In addition, we have established the Flood Resilience Strategy Implementation Governance Group with key partners to oversee implementation of the National Flood Resilience Strategy.”