HOMES and businesses across the county will benefit from £36m worth of flood protection work following a substantial increase in spending to tackle the problem.

Yorkshire Regional Flood Defence Committee has agreed to a ten per cent increase in the levy from councils, meaning they will contribute £21.8m to the overall cost.

The remaining money will come mainly from Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) grants, with further contributions coming from other organisations.

The committee, made up of representatives from local councils, the Environment Agency and Defra, has reviewed the long-term need for flood defences following the flooding in 2000.

It has agreed that capital spending on the problem will have to double during the next eight years if the problem is to to be effectively tackled.

Committee chairman Roy Ward said: "The region suffered further flooding in February and August last year and it is important that we can continue to make headway in planning ahead for much-needed flood defence schemes - especially those that can take several years to complete.

"A lot of work has been done since autumn 2000 to bring schemes forward to protect flood-hit communities and many of those schemes are now coming to fruition."

The high level of investment in flood protection measures across Yorkshire this year has increased dramatically from the £24.8m in 1999 to 2000.

The majority of the funding will be allocated to new capital projects, which include schemes at Pickering, York, Selby, Tadcaster, Malton and Norton.

About £4.3m will be spent on the maintenance of existing defences, while the operation of functions such as flood warning systems and the agency's emergency response to flooding will account for the remainder of the spending.

Councillor Arthur Barker, chairman of the Yorkshire and Humber Association of Local Authorities, said the increased investment from councils reflected the importance that was being given to protecting the region from further flooding.

"In view of the tough choices facing councils on funding services such as education and social services, the increase in flood defence investment shows just how committed local authorities and the Environment Agency are to protecting the region as a place to live, work and invest in," he said.