Floods swamp Scotland and the North-east

Flooding brought parts of Scotland to a standstill yesterday while householders in the North-east of England were spared as heavy rains abated.

The A9 was closed near Inverness and heavy-rainfall warnings remained in place last night for Arbroath, Angus and Inverness, the Met Office said.

Further south, flood alerts for the rivers Pont and Blyth in Northumberland were still in place, though the Environment Agency said levels were expected to fall by today. Torrential rain had sparked localised flooding in the county and neighbouring Co Durham on Saturday.