Lords Industry and Regulators Committee writes to Thérèse Coffey about government sewage discharge failures

The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee has written to Thérèse Coffey MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, asking her to address failures by the government in relation to the levels of sewage discharges in the UK’s rivers and beaches.

The letter has been sent by the committee’s Chair, Lord Hollick, ahead of Ms Coffey’s appearance before the committee in early 2023. It also asks her to address:

  • the overall performance of Ofwat and the Environment Agency and whether they are too passive in responding to water pollution;
  • the level of infrastructure investment needed to eliminate sewage spillages;
  • government failure to introduce measures requested by water companies to ban non-biodegradable wet wipes;
  • the acceptable level of return on capital invested in water companies;
  • whether Ofwat should require water companies to surrender their licence to operate if they persistently fail to invest at the required level;
  • Performance-related bonuses for water company executives despite persistent sewage spillages;
  • the capacity of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to hold regulators and water companies to account.

The committee has requested a response by Friday 13 January 2023.

The letter can be read and downloaded at – https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/31843/documents/179085/default/

NEWS CATEGORIES

LATEST NEWS

Latest assessment of UK’s climate shows baselines are shifting, records becoming more frequent and temperature and rainfall extremes becoming the norm

The 'State of the UK Climate in 2024' report has been published today, providing an up-to-date assessment of the UK climate. The 2024 report is...

Susan Davy to retire from the Board of Pennon Group

Pennon Group has announced that Susan Davy has decided to retire from the Board of Pennon Group and as CEO. Susan was appointed Chief Executive...

UK and France pledge joint funding for international biodiversity

Following the UK-France Summit and the State Visit of President Macron, the UK and France have committed joint financial support for the International Advisory...

CRU publishes Strategic Plan 2025–2027

Ireland's Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) has published its Strategic Plan for the period 2025-27. The CRU says the plan, published Friday 11 July...