The Cumbria Floods Partnership Group will look to reduce the impact of extreme weather in the county following the carnage left behind by Storm Desmond.
Environment secretary Liz Truss announced details of the new team, which will bring together local councils, the Environment Agency and community flood defence groups, yesterday.
The partnership, headed by Rory Stewart, floods minister and Penrith and the Border MP, will consider improvements to flood defences in the county, ways to slow rivers upstream to cut the intensity of water flows and build stronger links between residents and planners.
Ms Truss said: “After seeing first-hand the impact of the flooding in the north of England it is clear that the growing threat from more extreme weather events means we must reassure ourselves and those communities at risk, that our defences, our modelling and our future plans are robust.”
Details of a National Flood Resilience Review to better protect the country from future flooding and increasingly extreme weather events has also been announced.
The review has been commissioned to produce a new action plan by summer 2016, deciding what improvements are needed to cope with similar record rainfalls from this winter and risk assess key infrastructure such as electricity substations.
The review will also be published next summer and will be led by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Oliver Letwin, and include the government’s chief scientist, the Environment Agency’s chief executive and members of several other government departments.
Ms Truss said: “We are already spending £2.3bn over the next six years to better protect 300,000 homes from flooding but we need to be sure we have the very best possible plans in place for flood prevention and protection across the whole country.”
Chancellor George Osborne has already announced an additional £51m to support households and businesses affected by the floods in Cumbria and Lancashire.
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