Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Environment Agency has assessed how changes introduced by the flood and coastal erosion risk management funding policy in April 2026, including the counting of properties b
Answer
The Environment Agency has not undertaken a specific reassessment of the options identified in the 2017 Aldingbourne Rife Flood Risk Management Study against the funding policy introduced in April 2026. Funding eligibility is considered as projects are developed and progressed.
Verdict: RED (22/100)
The reply partly answers the question. It gives one concrete point: the Environment Agency has not reassessed the 2017 Aldingbourne options against the April 2026 policy. Its wider view on the policy changes is only hedged, with a general statement that eligibility will be considered as projects progress. The reply does not address the Agency's view on how properties are counted under the policy, so the person who asked would likely need to submit a follow-up for specifics.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is the Environment Agency's assessment or view of the changes introduced by the flood and coastal erosion risk management funding policy in April 2026. | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply says the Environment Agency has not reassessed the 2017 Aldingbourne options against the April 2026 policy, which is a concrete and relevant answer but covers only one study rather than the Agency's view of the policy changes generally. The second statement, that eligibility is considered as projects progress, gives no view on the changes at all. |
| What is the Environment Agency's assessment or view of the changes to the counting of properties under that policy. | Not Addressed | Generic | Neither statement mentions the counting of properties under the policy; the only relevant statement is a generic remark that eligibility is considered during project development, which does not address the Agency's view of the counting changes. |