The plan includes funding for schemes such as creating sustainable drainage systems - and building hollows in the ground to catch floodwater in heavy rain, before storing it to tackle summer droughts.

Insurers have also been asked to pay to improve flood-hit homes so they are more resilient. The policy allowing building on plains liable to flood will be reviewed. And £200,000 of the floods budget will be earmarked for measures including natural flood prevention to capture water on farmers' fields during heavy rainfall.

The government says the measures in the new plan are the most comprehensive in a decade, including the £5.2bn for flooding announced in the Budget four months ago. It says the funding will help protect a third of a million properties in England up to 2027.

There will be money for innovative projects such as sustainable drainage systems to provide porous surfaces in new developments to prevent water run-off.

Professor Hannah Cloke, the University of Reading, said: "A commitment to review policies on developments on flood plains does not sound in tune with cutting red tape to build houses more quickly.

"A fortnight ago, Boris was attacking 'newt counting', and bemoaning the pace of progress in the UK.

"Dealing with flooding shows precisely the difficulties behind his promise to build better, faster and greener.

"Sometimes being better and greener requires building more slowly and carefully, or we risk long-term economic and social costs that we cannot afford."

CIHT's Better planning, Better Transport, Better Places advice sets out the importance of a clear vision when planning new developments, eliminating flood risk should be integral to plans for new developments.

Source: BBC News 

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