MP TIM Farron has met floods minister Thérèse Coffey to ask her to make Cumbria "a special case" for flood protection funding.

The Westmorland and Lonsdale MP said communities such as Windermere, Bowness and Backbarrow were missing out on vital flood defences.

At the meeting he made the case for a flood defence scheme for Backbarrow which has been put forward by local residents, and for the Government to look at paying for protection for individual homes and businesses.

He also called on the Government to give "its fair share" of money towards tackling flooding at Windermere Road, Grange-over-Sands; and for water companies to be "held to a much higher standard" to prevent surface water flooding in places like Kendal and Burneside

“Every time there’s a disastrous flood, we have to fight for whatever money we can to secure flood defences, rebuild bridges and rehouse local families," said Mr Farron.

“But as we are an area that does flood more than any other part of the country, surely we need to be a special case for funding.”

As reported by the Gazette, in October 2018 residents at Grange's Windermere Road were swamped again, with more than three foot of water after heavy rainfall during Storm Callum.

In November, Cumbria County Council's South Lakeland local committee agreed to give £20,000 towards emergency works at the flood hotspot.