THE Government must develop a 25-year strategy to manage the UK's growing risk from floods, an insurance trade body said today.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) urged the Government to embark on an investment programme that reflects climate change and the real risk of flooding from rivers, the sea and drainage systems.

The group also called for stronger planning controls to ensure new developments are not built in areas at a risk of flooding, while it also said consumers should be given more information on which areas of the country are at a high risk.

The recommendations came in the ABI's report on learning the lessons from this summer's floods.

The floods in Yorkshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire alone will cost the industry more than £3bn, and have combined with other events to make 2007 the worst ever year for weather-related claims.

Stephen Haddrill, director general of the ABI, said: "This summer's devastating floods highlight the urgent need for a long-term strategy based around more investment, national co-ordination and better land use planning.

"Insurers want to continue to provide flood insurance. The right decisions from the Government will ensure that flood insurance remains widely available and affordable in the UK."

The ABI said the Climate Change Bill should make it a statutory objective for the Environment Agency to reduce flood risk, and it should also co-ordinate efforts to identify, assess and reduce the risk of flooding from all sources, including drainage.

It said a single national body should be responsible for flood management strategy to replace the current piecemeal approach.

The Bill should also include targets for adapting the UK to its changing climate, such as minimising the impact of flooding by setting a maximum number of businesses and houses that can be in high-risk areas.

The group added that the public had a right to know about flood risk across the country and how many homes and businesses were at risk, and the Environment Agency should commission maps showing this and make them publicly available.

It said the Government should also produce a 25-year plan outlining the investment needed to fight flooding and it should give an annual report on its progress.

At the same time the ABI said any building or repair work that took place in areas where the risk of flooding was high should be carried out to higher standards to minimise the impact if flooding did occur.

It added that there should be a reduction in VAT on flood-resilient products to support this.

The ABI also called on the Government to ensure the country is better prepared for floods, particularly by identifying ways to protect critical infrastructure, such as power stations, and ensuring the emergency services, local authorities and Environment Agency responded to floods more effectively.

A survey carried out by the group among people who were victims of this summer's floods found that the majority of residents thought an overhaul of the drainage systems is the most urgent measure needed to reduce the risk of future flooding.

But 61 per cent said they thought it was likely their area would be affected by flooding again on the same scale as this summer.

The report comes after research carried out for Channel 4's Dispatches, which identified the top 20 places in Britain most at risk from flooding, found that more than half of homeowners face the threat in the worst-affected area.

It revealed Boston in Lincolnshire - where 57 per cent of homeowners are at "significant risk" - to be the most susceptible to flood waters.

The town was followed by Windsor and Maidenhead, where one in five homeowners face the same level of danger.

A spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said: "The Government is committed to effectively managing flood and coastal erosion risk, and spending has nearly doubled in cash terms in the last ten years to an estimated £600m in 2007/08.

"This will increase to £800m in 2010/11, with a steady rise in annual budgets between now and then.

"Our record levels of investment accompany a national programme of prioritised work that takes account of the changing climate to improve protection for future generations. In addition, Government is working with the Environment Agency with a view to producing a 20-year long-term programme.

"We have already announced that the agency will be taking on the strategic overview of all flooding on the coast, and we are currently seeking views from all key stakeholders on how they might take on this role for all forms of inland flooding.