Reform council abolishes flood committee in flood-prone area
Flooding prevention work axed in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire council has abolished its flooding committee on Reform UK’s first day in charge.
That is despite Lincolnshire suffering some of the worst flooding in its history in both 2023 and 2024, with 900 homes affected, as well as further flooding in January this year.
Local Labour leader Karen Lee called the move “reckless, foolhardy and wrong”. Unusually, all opposition councillors united to vote against scrapping the committee.
The Flood and Water Management Scrutiny Committee was able to scrutinise other organisations involved in flood prevention work such as Anglian Water and drainage boards.
The council says flooding work will now be handled within the Environment Committee – but this still represents a loss of this dedicated attention and scrutiny.
Before Reform took control, the floods committee was working on making the case to central government for more funding for flood prevention.