Storm Babet: Ministerial taskforce has never met and no extra funding found

A ministerial taskforce set up to help communities devastated by Storm Babet has never met and no additional funding has yet been identified by the Scottish Government, The Sunday Post can exclusively reveal.

Three weeks on from what is expected to be one of the costliest weather events in Scotland’s history, hundreds of families are facing Christmas out of their homes.

Residents in areas such as Aberdeenshire and Angus – some of whom are living with their family and pets in a single room – fear they could be displaced for months.

First Minister Humza Yousaf pledged during a visit to Brechin – one of the worst hit towns in the country – to work hand in glove with local authorities to support local people and businesses.

He said there would be “days, weeks and months” of discussions between the Scottish Government and Angus Council about support for the area.

What does the report say?

But a confidential report, obtained by us, reveals that weeks later, the group set up by the SNP leader to co-ordinate the response has yet to meet and local authority bosses are still waiting for answers on what money will be available to rebuild.

It states: “The chief executive and leader have written separately to Scottish Government requesting information regarding progress of the setting up of ministerial taskforce. No date has been identified.

“No additional funding for Angus residents, businesses or farming community has been identified by Scottish Government to date.”

The report, which was handed to councillors in Angus this week, also sets out that clarifications are still being sought from the government around what is recoverable from the Bellwin Scheme.

The recovery fund provides additional cash to help councils dealing with unforeseen costs in the immediate aftermath of emergency incidents.

It is not intended to finance longer term repairs or spending.

A ‘forgotten town’

We understand that since the report was handed to outraged officials, a meeting of the ministerial taskforce has been arranged for Thursday.

But critics say the “ridiculous” wait has failed local people.

Businesses hit by the worst of Storm Babet say Brechin has become a forgotten town in the weeks since the flooding first hit.

Alan Johnston, chief executive of Brechin Castle Centre, said almost nothing has been done to help companies facing huge losses in the wake of the damage.

He said: “Humza Yousaf said support would be put in place quickly and that certainly hasn’t been the case.”

Euan Clark was one of the residents who met Humza Yousaf when the first minister visited Brechin on October 23.

He said at the time that the visit meant a lot to local people, and him personally, but now believes the town has been forgotten.

Euan insisted that, despite all the words and promises, there has been little support for the town beyond the first few days after the news first broke.

He said: “There’s been nothing happening. Not really.

“I never ever thought I’d be homeless.

“I don’t think there’s any chance we’ll be housed before Christmas now.”

What is the rest of the UK doing?

Earlier this week, the Treasury announced it had switched the allocation of £60 million in capital funding for the Scottish Government to resource funding.

The response to the flooding is a devolved responsibility so it is up to the Scottish Government to decide how to spend the money.

The UK Government has already announced a range of support for areas in England.

It includes households being able to apply for up to £500 to help with immediate costs, and up to £5,000 to make their homes and businesses more resilient via the Property Flood Resilience Grant Scheme.

Funding for these measures comes from existing budgets so does not generate any additional money for the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Conservatives say there appears to be no plan for recovery in Scotland.

North East MSP Liam Kerr said: “When Humza Yousaf visited Brechin after a disastrous weekend, he pledged the people there would have the full backing of his government.

“The flooding taskforce was meant to be an integral part of that support.

“So for it to never have even met, weeks after the storm, is ridiculous.

“It lets the people of Brechin and Angus down.

“The people of Brechin, Angus, and the North East will feel furious as they are let down yet again by a government that has never prioritised anything north of the central belt.”

Scale of damage ‘sobering’

Angus Council leader Beth Whiteside described the extent of the damage from Storm Babet as sobering, and said the scale of support needed in Brechin and the surrounding towns is huge.

She said: “Obviously everyone would like to see iron-clad guarantees and figures but the Scottish Government needs to get an idea of exactly what level of support is required.

“We have had verbal commitments from the first minister and local government minister that help will be forthcoming.

“Obviously the sooner we get a better idea about specifically what help is there the better.”

The Scottish Government said the immediate response to Storm Babet was discussed at Cabinet meetings.

It will continue to work with impacted communities to assess how they can best be supported in recovery efforts.

A spokeswoman added: “We are working with local groups to establish exactly what is required.

“We have already provided £150 million, on top of our long-standing £42 million annual funding, for flood risk management, in addition to £12 million for coastal change adaptation over the course of this parliament.”