SOUTHAMPTON City Council has not funded any new flood defence schemes in Southampton for at least the past five years.

A Daily Echo investigation has discovered that the city’s flood defence budget since 2005 has amounted to just £168,146.

Half the budget was spent on staff costs, while the remaining £84,000 was used to fund two new flood strategy reports.

Crucially, the Freedom of Information request also revealed that not a single penny of council taxpayers’ money has been spent on protecting homes.

This is despite official environment Agency (EA) figures showing that 7,600 homes in Southampton are at risk of flooding.

That number is expected to soar over the next few decades with 25,000 new homes due to be built in the city by 2035.

Southampton faces the dualthreat of surfacing flooding caused by the city’s ageing drainage network, and the ever-increasing risk of coastal flooding due to sea level rise.

In May 2008, the city’s last major flooding incident, a month’s rainfall fell in a single day. Southampton Central Station was closed after every platform was left underwater and standing water covered the tracks.

Councillor Matt Dean, Cabinet member for environment since 2008, said he was “not surprised” there had been no investment in flood defence projects.

However, he said the threat was increasing and that under the new Flood Management Bill, local authorities would be responsible for protecting residents.

“Until recently flooding has not been a major issue in the city,” Cllr Dean said.

“But now we have major developments planned in the city and we need to make sure that we keep our existing developments safe and that our future developments are flood resilient.”

Cllr Dean said a £400,000 study, funded by the EA, had been launched to assess the threat flooding posed to Southampton.

The City Centre Coastal Flood and Erosion Risk Strategy, due to be published late next year, will identify what new coastal defence schemes are needed to make the city flood-proof for the next century.

A powerful new board, the Southampton Flood Risk Management Group – comprised of the EA, city council, Southern Water and port bosses ABP – is also regularly meeting to discuss the threats.

New infrastructure, such as sea walls, to protect existing developments would be funded with public cash.

However, developers hoping to build lucrative residential or commercial developments in flood risk areas close to water would be expected to pay for new defences.