East Sussex householders could face a big hike in their council tax if the Government does not pledge extra cash for flood repairs.

Bills might have to rise by a minimum of 8.3 per cent - an increase of £73 for the average Band D household in the county.

East Sussex has applied for £6.3 million from the Government to pay for repairs after October's devastating floods, but councillors expect to receive only a fraction of that.

A delegation from the county council yesterday lobbied Local Government Minister Hilary Armstrong but left without a promise of more money.

The group, joined by Hastings Labour MP Michael Foster, told Ms Armstrong that the bill for repairs was still rising. The largest cost is that of repairs to roads and bridges.

So far the Government has offered the council no extra money to help meet the bill, despite promises of cash help.

The council asked for more flexibility in operating the Bellwin Scheme, used to decide how much Government money councils get after disasters.

Councillors said they might have to increase council tax or take money from transport projects to pay for the repairs.

The delegation also pressed the minister to release more money to help pay for care for the elderly.

Council leader David Rogers said: "Our message to the minister is simple. We just don't have the resources to find the millions of pounds needed to recover from the October floods, or the acute under-funding of social care by central government.

"It cannot be right to ask local people to pay up for flood damage, particularly when so many residents have suffered themselves."

Mr Foster said after the meeting: "The Minister said she understood our problems but she made no promises.

"The total budget from central government for local authorities rose by 6.6 per cent this year and she didn't believe more money would become available."