Branscombe Mouth in Devon, southwest England (Image: Getty)
Tory MPs have accused Labour of using “headline-grabbing sticks to beat water companies with” instead of having a detailed plan to improve water quality.
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Environment Secretary Steve Reed has set out reforms aimed at stopping the “unacceptable destruction of our waterways” during a meeting with water companies under fire over sewage pollution and leaks.
The changes include ensuring water infrastructure funding is ring-fenced and can only be spent on upgrades, as well as altering company rules to ensure customers are at the heart of the companies’ objectives, and that consumers have the power to summon bosses to meetings.
Danny Kruger MP said: “We need a detailed plan to improve our water quality, rather than just headline-grabbing sticks to beat water companies with. We absolutely should penalise badly behaved water companies and protect consumers, as the government on Thursday announced it will be doing, and which builds on the uncapping of fines for water firms under the last government. But longer-term reform of water regulation that looks at all sources of pollution is needed if we are to actually improve the quality of our water.
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“As agricultural runoff is one of the other big pressure points for water, an increase in the farming budget is also needed in order to help farmers to invest in new slurry stores and improve water quality on their land. As the opposition, we must hold the new government to account for its promises on water quality and shine a light on the huge gaps in their plans for our rivers.”
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Water regulator Ofwat released its draft decision on the water industry’s future charging and spending plans on Thursday, with further reforms to the sector expected in the coming weeks and months.
It said the average bill increase for water and wastewater companies would be ￡94 in total over five years – or ￡19 a year – excluding inflation.
David Simmonds MP said: “It is in Conservatives' DNA to protect, enhance and pass on what we have inherited to future generations. It is why the Conservatives have always cared deeply about the environment.
“The British public deserve a proper plan for their rivers that builds on the last government’s important steps. This means harnessing nature-based solutions to water quality and flooding, tackling all sources of water pollution, and upgrading our sewerage system. If these policies are not entwined with a strategy to clean our rivers and protect our precious chalk streams, then today’s announcements will be for the media rather than for water quality.”
Kitty Thompson, senior nature programme manager at the Conservative Environment Network, said Labour’s announcements on Thursday “will go some way” to protect consumers and hold water companies to account.
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But she warned they will be “insufficient” for cleaning the nation’s waterways.
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A source close to Mr Reed said: “The measures that Steve Reed set out on Thursday are only the first steps towards much broader reforms to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas.
“We’ll be outlining further policies in the weeks and months to come. But in these crucial first steps, what we’re calling the mitigating policies for the Tories’ failure, we had to get these out the door quickly to ensure that the money that is going up as a result of that Tory failure is going to invest in the crucial infrastructure upgrades we need to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas.
“This is a result of Tory failure and these are only the first steps towards what is going to be much broader reforms.”
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