Scotland suffered heavy flooding in October last year

The Scottish Executive budget for 2006/07 showed that �17m set aside for flood prevention has not been spent.

Deputy Finance Minister George Lyon said planning problems have held up a number of projects across the country.

The SNP called for details of any flood prevention funds which have not been spent since devolution in 1999.

The revised spring budget for this financial year shows the executive will spend �28.089bn this year - down �126m on previous forecasts.

Mr Lyon told Holyrood's finance committee that the executive intended to carry the funds forward to be spent next year.

We never seem to see the money getting spent John Swinney MSP

He said the money would be required in 2007/08 to meet costs of flood prevention schemes in Dunfermline, Water of Leith, Galston and Forres.

However, John Swinney, the SNP's finance spokesman, raised concerns over the shortfall.

He said: "In the spring budget revision last year, �59m was removed from the cup on flood and coastal protection.

"This is becoming a cumulative problem of a lack of an ability to spend the money the Scottish Parliament is allocating for flood prevention activities.

"The issue that a lot of us are concerned about is that every year there's a transfer out of flood and coastal prevention into the cup and we never seem to see the money getting spent."

Concerns raised

Mr Swinney warned it could lead to the situation where "we miraculously find that this money has haemorrhaged off into the ether and is not being spent for the purpose that parliament voted for it to be spent".

Mr Lyon said most of the "slippage" was because of delays in the planning system, which was controlled by councils.

"While I would like to see most of the money spent according to the year it is allocated, it's very difficult to see how we would make that happen if it's planning which is the problem," he said.

Former communities minister Malcolm Chisholm also flagged up a �22m fall in the proposed budget for environmental protection.

He raised concerns that most of this would come from coastal erosion and flood prevention schemes.