Floods Recovery Minister John Healey has said that all the extra money the UK is receiving from the European Union (EU) to help with flood recovery will be passed on to communities affected by last summer’s floods.

Healey announced that the Government was able to set up a Restoration Fund of almost £31m for English local authorities affected by last summer’s flood to support their efforts to rebuild their communities because of the success of the UK in bidding for the European Union Solidarity Fund. This money is the net receipt from Europe and is on top of up to £88m already made available to flood-hit areas to help them get back on their feet.

The new fund will be made available to local authorities, police authorities and fire and rescue authorities on the basis of costs incurred in dealing with the problems since the summer. Local authorities will be free to spend this money as they decide according to local priorities.