Scottish Executive considers emergency flooding assistance

The Scottish Executive is considering activating an emergency funding scheme to provide assistance to help communities affected by heavy flooding in August.


Perth and Kinross council and Stirling Council have applied for help under the Bellwin Scheme which can provide emergency funding under section 155 of the Local Government Housing Act 1989.

Deputy Finance Minister Tavish Scott said: “Perth and Kinross Council and Stirling Council have applied for help under the Bellwin scheme and I am pleased that we are able to trigger it to help those local communities affected. Flooding can have a devastating effect on local communities and nobody who saw the pictures of the landslides could fail to be horrified by them.”

The Executive will consider all eligible expenditure under the terms of the Scheme when claims have been received from the Councils. The Bellwin scheme is a discretionary scheme to give special financial assistance to authorities who would otherwise be faced with an undue financial burden as a result of providing relief and carrying out immediate work due to large scale emergencies.

The key criterion is “the safeguarding of life and property and prevention of suffering or severe inconvenience.” Grants are payable to authorities at 85% of the eligible costs incurred above a threshold set for each authority.

By David Hopkins

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