The council will now refer its decision to confirm the scheme without modifications to the Scottish Government The council will also notify every person who made an objection that has already been considered by the GFPS.

Scottish Ministers will then decide whether Falkirk Council should make the final decision on the Scheme or if Ministers should make the decision themselves.

If Scottish Ministers take over the decision-making process, a public local inquiry (PLI) will be held, led by an independent reporter. If Ministers decide that Falkirk Council should make the final decision, a local hearing will be held, and an independent reporter would also be appointed. The reporter in both cases will recommend whether the scheme should be confirmed, confirmed with modifications or rejected.

To allow Scottish Ministers to make a decision, Falkirk Council will provide a package of information including Scheme documents, a summary of the objections received by the council, copies of the objections, and other information considered by the council.

Council leader, Cecil Meiklejohn, said: “We are pleased that the Executive Committee has agreed to make a preliminary decision to confirm the Grangemouth Flood Protection Scheme without modifications today and move forward to the next stage of this important infrastructure project. Falkirk Council is committed to protecting our local community,
homes and businesses from increasing flood risks.”

After the scheme is confirmed, the project will be able to move into the delivery stage and officers will commence detailed design and procurement of the first construction works. A Taskforce has been set up between the Scottish Government and Falkirk Council to agree an approach which focusses delivery of the project in sequential phases as funding is made available. Work to understand dependencies and sequencing of construction work has been concluded allowing funding to be allocated in future years to match this phased delivery approach.

As the largest flood defence project in Scotland and one of the biggest in the United Kingdom, the Grangemouth Flood Protection Scheme was identified as the highest national priority given the potentially significant impacts for the community if an extreme flood event were to occur.

On completion, the Scheme will protect 6,025 people, 2,760 homes, 1,200 non-residential property and road and rail infrastructure. It will also provide 28km (17 miles) of flood defence walls, embankments, the installation of flood gates, flow regulation measures and drainage work. The Scheme will also include works at the entrance to the Port of Grangemouth and within the petrochemical complex.