We are concerned that the words on flood risk in national planning policy still do not always translate into actions. We are encouraged by the Government’s proposal that planning applications approved against flood risk advice could in future be subject to call-in by the Secretary of State. The Government should provide further detail on its proposals for cases in which flood risk advice on planning applications is not followed. The remit of the Environment Agency as a statutory consultee should be expanded to include areas of future risk owing to climate change.