The Government submits an application for EU flood funding

The Government has submitted an application to the European Commission for support from the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) to help recovery from the recent flooding in the UK.

Flood Recovery Minister John Healey said that a provisional assessment of damage caused by the June and July floods lies at over E4billion - significantly above the E3billion threshold required for a Member State to make an application.

Whilst this is currently the best working estimate based on work with local authorities and other agencies, the final and confirmed costs will not be known for some time. We will continue to work closely with Government offices and other authorities and agencies to update this information. The application is being submitted today in order to meet the deadline set out by the Commission but the ability to revise information is standard practice when submitting a bid covering a recovery operation of this size.

Although the calculations used to assess whether an application meets the threshold includes insurable costs, the aim of the EUSF is to help Member States meet some of the uninsurable costs of dealing with natural disasters, for example, supporting the costs of emergency services, cleaning up and putting infrastructure back into working order.

The European Commission will decide if the application is successful. If successful we would expect resources to be available in nine to twelve months time.

The Commission do not provide full funding for the cost of damage. They would only provide a proportion of the costs which they decide - insurers will also have a key role to play as well as central government, local government, industry and other agencies playing their part as well.

John Healey MP said: "This summer's floods caused widespread damage across large parts of the country. The insurance industry estimate that there will be around 45,000 insurance claims from households and 14,500 from businesses with further damage to schools, roads and leisure facilities. There has also been a significant impact on agriculture and the tourist industry.

"A huge amount of work across Government has taken place to support the local recovery operation and help communities get back on their feet. Over £16million has already been paid out to local authorities to help those people most in need, £14million to support schools and family services and £3million has been made available for transport infrastructure. In addition over £10million has been announced to support businesses and local economies including money to promote rural destinations and visitor attractions. More Government help for local authorities will follow through the special Bellwin scheme.

"As part of this cross-Government work we are exercising our right to apply for support from the EU Solidarity Fund and have today submitted a provisional application. This fund was set up specifically to help countries who have experienced extensive damage from natural disasters such as floods. I would like to thank all those authorities and local agencies who have worked hard to help us put together this complex application so swiftly - and within a month of the July floods.

"It will be for the Commission to decide whether our application is successful and this process may take up to a year. If successful we would only receive a proportion of the total costs. That's why it's important we continue to work with insurers, local government, industry and other agencies to ensure life gets back to normal as quickly as possible. We know this will not happen overnight but are firmly committed to working in partnership to achieve this for as long as it takes."