None of Yorkshire's beaches are among a record number in the United Kingdom to be awarded the European Blue Flag.

It was announced today that 45 beaches were considered good enough for the award in terms of water standards and amenities, up from 38 last year.

In addition, six marinas gained Blue Flags in the first year they have been included.

The Blue Flag is awarded in more than 20 countries for resort beaches and marinas with high standards of environmental management.

Criteria include beach cleanliness, dog control, wheelchair access, provision of facilities and provision of lifesaving equipment.

To get a Blue Flag, beaches must also reach European Community bathing water guideline standards.

Beaches at Whitby, Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington are among those missing from the list.

In fact, not one Blue Flag has been awarded for the huge swathe of coastline between Aberdour in Scotland and Sutton-on-Sea in Lincolnshire.

Kevin Barrand, resorts and entertainments officer with Scarborough Borough Council, said: "We are disappointed not to receive a Blue Flag. We have had them previously - a couple of years ago was the last time for Scarborough North Bay and for Filey and Whitby as well."

Roy Ayrton, the council's director of environmental health and housing services, said: "All the waters at Scarborough North and South Bays, Filey and Whitby regularly comply with the requirements of the EC Bathing Water Directive."

He said Blue Flag status was another target to aspire to over and above the imperative standard and he felt Scarborough, Whitby and Filey should fare better in future.

"What we have got coming along by 2000 is Yorkshire Water's Coast Care programme, under which the standard of sewage treatment to be installed at all three sites will be the best in the country and will include disinfection by ultra-violet light."

Mr Ayrton said: "Everyone likes to see improvements in environmental quality.

"With the Coast Care programme, we should certainly see the sewage treatment standards that everybody is looking for."

A £27 million waste water treatment works at Scalby Lodge Farm, Scarborough, forms part of the £120 million Coast Care programme.

Other schemes at Whitby, Filey and Bridlington should also be operational early in the new Millennium.

Professor Graham Ashworth, director general of the Tidy Britain Group which co-ordinates the Blue Flag scheme in the UK, said: "These results confirm what we have always known - that the UK has some of the best beaches in Europe."

He added: "This is excellent news for tourism in the UK."

Mr Barrand said it would be nice to qualify for Blue Flags again, but added: "We do have the Tidy Britain Group good-beach awards on all of the major beaches in the borough.

"They are awarded to beaches that meet mandatory standards for bathing water and come up to specification on tidiness and the facilities that are available."

Brian Handley, chief executive of the Yorkshire Tourist Board, said: "We are disappointed that no Yorkshire beaches have been awarded a European Blue Flag.

"This doesn't, however, mean that there are no good-quality beaches in this region."

Mr Handley said: "The Tidy Britain Group also runs the Seaside Awards, and they have already given eight Yorkshire beaches a 1998 award.

"To be given one of those, a beach has to meet a high standard of water quality and beach management and pass between 13 and 29 different checks."

He said: "The situation with regard to awards is rather confusing to us and, therefore, how does the general public understand what all these various awards mean."

Mr Handley added: "We will, however, continue to encourage the continuous improvement of quality standard for our beaches and hope that, next year, the Yorkshire region will achieve a Blue Flag."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.