Britain’s flood defences are inadequate to deal with inundations on the scale seen last year, largely owing to confusion over which government agencies should take responsibility, an official review will say on Wednesday.

The Pitt Review will criticise the lack of a coherent national strategy to prepare for floods and deal with their aftermath, and will call for the government agencies charged with flood warnings and defences – the Environment Agency, the Met Office, the Highways Agency and local authorities – to co-operate more closely.