Labour urged to honour coastal defences promise

Campaigners have called on the government to stick to its election pledge and protect a coastline ravaged by erosion.

More than 32 homes have been lost to the sea or demolished at Hemsby, Norfolk, since 2013 – including four this week, with a further four set to go – and no plans to shore-up the sandy cliffs.

A petition signed by hundreds of people says Labour promised to change the funding criteria for sea defences for resorts such as Hemsby which rely on tourism.

A spokesperson for Defra said it was committed to supporting coastal communities, including Hemsby.

Chris Batten, chairman of Hemsby Lifeboat, was among those who delivered the petition to No 10 Downing Street.

The community in Hemsby felt abandoned, he said, with the village having lived with the threat of the encroaching sea for decades.

His lifeboat station is due to relocate to a cafe further from the beach due to the erosion affecting its shoreline base.

"It's difficult unless you're living it to really understand," he said.

"These people are having their entire lives turned on their heads, their main dwelling falling into the sea with no assistance from central government, no compensation of any kind.

"We've been campaigning tirelessly for years and years and nothing is happening.

"There's a hell of a lot of revenue that comes into the area that would be significantly affected if the erosion continues.

"I think it's a false economy to do nothing."

Great Yarmouth MP Rupert Lowe, formerly of Reform UK and now an independent, said the government had made "promises" to Hemsby in 2024 before the general election.

In a visit to the resort, the then shadow environment secretary Steve Reed said Labour would change the criteria for coastal defence funding to allow hospitality and tourism to be valued, as well as housing.

"They were campaigning on this very topic, saying they were going to take action to protect the Hemsby coastline," said Lowe.

"It is logical now to protect the coastline and to secure the futures of the 150-plus house owners [whose homes] are likely to disappear into the sea, and to protect the local economy, which I think is being affected by this."

In a statement, Defra added that it was "ensuring flood and coastal erosion risk management is fit for the challenges we face now and in the future".

It added: "We're supporting coastal communities through our commitment to invest at least £10.5bn in flooding and coastal erosion by 2036, benefiting nearly 900,000 properties."

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