DRINKING water in Yorkshire is the best it has ever been, according to national experts.

The 12th annual report of tghe Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) showed the county's water scored 99.91 per cent and was easily in compliance with tough regulatory standards.

In 2001, more than 250,000 samples were taken to be tested and 99.91 per cent of them met the stringent standards, beating the national average of 99.86 per cent.

The inspectorate's regional inspector, Claire Jackson, said the result was encouraging and illustrated the continuous improvement that had been made in water quality across the county.

She said: "This is largely due to improved monitoring and a strict enforcement regime from the DWI, which has resulted in major investment by Yorkshire Water at its water treatment works and on the distribution system."

However, she warned that despite the results there was no room for complacency.

"New regulations that come into force at the beginning of 2004 will bring even tougher standards for drinking water quality," she said.

"A number of programmes of work are already in place across the region to meet these new standards - and this year's results show that Yorkshire's water already meets these new higher standards in many cases."