A GOVERNMENT claim that it is winning the battle against flooding has received a mixed response in Gloucestershire.

The county was one of the worst hit in Britain after the July 2007 deluge. Hundreds were made homeless when their houses were flooded.

Yesterday, the Government published an update on its response to Sir Michael Pitt's independent review of the disaster.

A year after the review was published, and six months on from its last response, the Government claims to be making significant progress on his key findings.

Ministers revealed details of a £5 million Flood Protection Grant Scheme, which will see Tewkesbury Borough Council get £119,000 to protect 21 homes and Gloucester City Council receive £68,400 to protect 12 homes.

They pointed to the publication of draft legislation aimed at combating the flood threat and Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said: "The Pitt progress report explains how we will complete implementation of Sir Michael's recommendations, with target dates."

Tewkesbury Borough Council spokesman Chris Pike said the Government was making good progress towards helping flood-hit areas like Tewkesbury.

He admitted that the council had bid for £404,000 to protect 71 homes but said it was an ambitious bid and he was pleased with the award made.

He said it was too early to say which homes in the borough would be protected but added: "It's welcome money and this is only the first tranch of funding so it's good news. The Government is responding."

But Cheltenham MP Martin Horwood said: "The 2007 floods wrecked homes, properties and lives. Two years on, the Government's claim to have made 'significant progress' is laughable.

"If new floods hit us this summer, Britain will be almost as ill-prepared as it was then."

He said flood defences were under-funded by hundreds of millions of pounds, no one had yet taken on the recommended national overview of all flood risk and more houses were being put in flood risk areas.

Dave Witts, of the Tewkesbury-based Severn and Avon Valley Combined Flood Group, said the Government was acting too slowly.

He said: "They've done a lot of window dressing and it all depends on the Flood and Water Management Bill, currently out to consultation."

The Pitt review made 92 recommendations covering six main themes – knowing when and where it will flood, reducing the risk of flooding and its impact, being rescued and cared for during an emergency, maintaining power and water supplies and protecting essential services, better advice and help to protect families and homes, and recovery.