A Government minister is due in Cockermouth today to catch up with businesses which she visited shortly after the floods in December.

Business minister Anna Soubry is set to walk Main Street to see how the town is recovering.

She is also set to speak to businesses that have benefited from Government grants and support in recent months.

A spokesman said: "During the floods over winter Mrs Soubry visited a number of businesses that had been affected. She is now returning to see how government support for the area has helped the same businesses get back on their feet."

The visit comes as the town continues to recover from the floods.

Town councillors met this week to decide the best way forward for Memorial Gardens, which was badly damaged in the floods.

They agreed that footpaths, which were ripped out by the water, should be reinstated this year.

A small number of trees will also be removed from the river's edge and flood defences put in place.

Following a site visit they drew up a two-year managed retreat with Ian Creighton, of West Cumbria Rivers Trust. They have taken on a contractor and will work out costings, apply for licences and explore funding opportunities.

The gardens are owned by the town council but not insured. They were submerged in fast-flowing flood water. Areas of land opposite the castle were lost, footpaths were torn out and debris covered benches, railings and grass.

The Environment Agency is due to spend between four and five weeks dredging the river. It plans to remove gravel from the River Derwent upstream and downstream of Gote Bridge. The agency has agreed to give some of the gravel to the town council to use on the destroyed footpaths.

At a public meeting last month, people were told the work would take place soon. A start date has not yet been confirmed.

An agency spokesman said this week: "There are still a few last minute plans and background work that come with it, like permits."