The Environment Agency has warned that thousands of lives and homes are being put at risk because councils are allowing properties to be built in areas that are at serious risk of flooding. In Britain at least five million people in two million homes are at risk of flood. The agency’s chief executive Lady Young estimates that in 40% of cases local councils are ignoring Whitehall guidance and not consulting the agency before they give planning permission. “What surprises me is that having consulted the flood risk experts at the agency, local authorities are prepared to put people’s property and lives at risk by allowing development in the flood plain,” she said. The agency wants ministers to make it a legal obligation for councils to complete a risk assessment for every development in the flood plain. Lady Young said it was possible to mitigate many problems by building flood defences or diverting flood water. Guardian