FEARFUL residents whose homes look set to be lost to coastal erosion have welcomed a £1.2m funding package.

A pilot scheme will see East Riding Council buy homes which are likely to disappear into the sea over the next 15 years.

The local authority will then lease the homes back to their owners giving them time and money to plan for a future move. (more…)

Graham Stuart, MP for Beverley and Holderness, is to meet with members of the Humber Estuary Coastal Authorities Group and Environment Agency (Friday Nov 13) following the publication of the draft of the second Shoreline Management Plan (SMP2).

The plan, which covers the coast from Flamborough in the North to Gibraltar Point, Lincolnshire, in the South, sets out how and where the coast will be defended for the next 100 years.

Graham said: “This is a draft plan and it is vital as many people as possible use the consultation period to make their feelings known. (more…)

Beverley and Holderness MP, Graham Stuart, has urged as many Holderness residents as possible to respond to a new Government consultation on coastal change policy.

The consultation looks at how coastal communities can successfully adapt to the impact of coastal change over the next few decades. One of the main issues the Government is keen to look at is the level of assistance afforded to homeowners who are affected by coastal erosion. For example, the consultation asks the following:

• Do you agree that it is appropriate for Government to make available public funds to local authorities to cover demolition costs for which private homeowners are currently liable?
• Is the homeowner assistance package set at the right level to strike the balance between individuals taking responsibility for their investment decisions, and ensuring that local authorities are able to provide practical assistance to homeowners who lose their home as a result of erosion? If not how could this be done?
• How should the payment mechanism for the demolition and moving assistance grant work? What evidence should be provided to Defra to support a claim for demolition and moving costs? (more…)

FOR YEARS public meetings discussing the issues of coastal erosion, saline flooding and offshore aggregate dredging have attracted regular comments along the lines of “the Dutch would never do it like this”.

But until this week few people have taken the time and effort to visit Holland, speak to the relevant experts and assess the realities.

On Thursday North Norfolk MP Norman Lamb, who chairs the all party parliamentary group on coastal and marine issues, leading Norfolk coastal campaigner Malcolm Kerby and Graham Stuart, a Yorkshire MP who sits as Mr Lamb’s Conservative vice chairman on the same parliamentary group, did just that. (more…)