AS HEAVY rain continued to thunder down over flood-threatened Yorkshire overnight, new environment secretary Hilary Benn was able to make his first dramatic announcement: an extra £200 million for flood defences.

Although welcome to thousands of flood victims in South Yorkshire - and as already swollen rivers in North Yorkshire threatened to break their banks - the extra money will not help in the present crisis.

The announcement was also received with cynicism by political observers as the new Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, had ordered swingeing cuts to Defra's flood defence budget whilst he was Chancellor of the Exchequer. The new sum will take the budget to £800 million.

This is £50 million more than demanded by the British insurance industry. Some insurers have threatened to refuse cover on houses with a past record of being flooded, a matter of great concern to the owners of property near several Yorkshire Dales rivers including the Aire, the Swale, the Ure and some lengths of the Wharfe.