Prime Minister Tony Blair gave warm words of welcome to heroes of the flood which swept Sussex during the wettest autumn on record.

They were appreciated by many of the people who risked their lives or who undertook hours of cold, dirty work to help victims of the disaster.

But more important to leaders of councils in the worst affected districts, such as Lewes and Wealden, were promises of future help.

What these authorities need in the short term is cash to help compensate for the large sums which had to be spent on the emergency.

They also deserve immediate work on measures to reduce the risk of it all happening a second time.

The water table is still dangerously high despite two dry weeks and the heavy rain of the last few days could start flooding all over again.

Long-range weather forecasts indicate wet autumns will probably become more frequent in the South because of global warming.

The Government must make measures to tackle flood prevention a top priority for areas at risk, including Lewes, Uckfield, Robertsbridge and Chichester.

It will cost many millions of pounds, but much more than that will have to be spent dealing with any repetition of last year's floods, to say nothing of the cost in human misery.