Labour launched an attack on the government yesterday for slashing millions from flood protection funding after it was forced to fork out an extra £130 million to help councils deal with the latest storm damage.

Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles promised yesterday £30m flood funding this year and £100m next year during an emergency statement in the Commons.

In his statement Mr Pickles said: "Emergency work and repairs started during December's coastal surge, however, the full picture of the damage caused to the flood defences has not yet emerged and the weather conditions are still savage.

"The government will carry out a rapid review of the additional work needed to restore our flood defences and maintain them in target condition.

"In the short-term, I can announce that the government will provide an additional £130m for emergency repairs and maintenance - £30m in the current year and £100m next year.

"This will cover costs incurred during the current emergency response and recovery, as well as essential repairs to ensure that defences are maintained."

Shadow environment secretary Maria Eagle said the government had been "caught out" by the floods and said chaos and confusion had troubled Defra's response.

Ms Eagle welcomed the funding announcements but told the Commons it was an admission by the coalition that it had made a mistake by cutting annual flood protection spending by around £97m.

A freedom of information request had shown Environment Secretary Owen Paterson cut more than 40 per cent from the domestic climate change budget last year, she claimed.

She asked Mr Pickles: "Was this really the right priority for the biggest cut to any Defra programme?"

The debate happened as Britain continued to be battered by storms, with a 78-foot wave battering Penzance in Cornwall, leaving many areas at risk of further flooding.

More than 5,000 properties have been flooded, including 40 in Somerset.

Many flood-hit homes on the Somerset Levels have already been evacuated and further rainfall raises the prospect of more residents having to leave their houses.

Nearly 700 homes were still suffering from power blackouts, while a damaged railway line at Dawlish in Devon, which cannot be repaired because of the weather, is costing the regional economy "tens of millions of pounds."