Emma Hardy has launched a Flood and Drought Resilience Taskforce intended to improve coordination across government, industry and civil society.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the group would hold its first meeting on 14 October. More than 50 organisations are due to participate, including local government, emergency services, insurers, infrastructure operators and farming bodies.
The taskforce will examine how preparations for floods and water shortages can be strengthened before crises occur. It will also consider the pressures created when drought and flooding affect different parts of the country in quick succession.
The body is designed to complement the existing National Drought Group rather than replace it. Its wider membership is intended to connect decisions on water supply, land management, infrastructure and emergency response.
Hardy, the Labour MP for Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice and a minister of state at Defra, said the country needed to prepare for more frequent and severe weather events.
The department placed the new forum alongside the Government’s commitment to invest at least £10.5 billion in flood defences between 2024 and 2036. The announcement creates a coordination mechanism; it does not itself allocate a new funding pot.
