Our beautiful coastline and rivers are an important part of what makes our area so special. I often hear how concerns about the cleanliness of our waterways. Consistent water pollution on this scale is not a new problem, but this Government is the first to tackle it.
We recently announced that 27 new bathing water sites will be designated across England. One of these is the Coastguards Beach at Mothercombe in our constituency. Sir Gary Streeter was a key player in advocating for this.
The next five years will see transformational investment and change in the water sector on a scale never seen before, thanks to the introduction of 100% monitoring – up from 7% under the last Labour Government – and targets on leaks and pollution.
Last year 90% of our designated bathing waters were classified as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’, up from 76% in 2010. But we must go further. That is why we set out an ambitious Plan for Water, bringing historic levels of transparency and investment, while keeping bill increases affordable for consumers.
This plan includes:
❱ Extending the £50 water rebate for those in the South West across the Parliament.
❱ Working with the regulator to further hold companies to account, including banning executive bonuses if a company has committed a serious criminal breach. This will build on our legislation for unlimited fines.
❱ Using fines from water companies to invest in river restoration projects, including linking up thriving habitats to multiply the benefits for wildlife and water quality. This will create a river recovery network, modelled on our nature recovery network, and create new destinations for people to enjoy across England. It will take a more local, tailored approach like the plan for the River Wye.
To deliver our ambitious plan for water beyond 2030, we will reform the ‘Price Review’ regulatory process for water companies. This will consider how we move to a more localised catchment-based and outcome-focussed approach, that better utilises nature-based solutions and further strengthens sanctions for water companies that fail to deliver for the public, coasts and rivers.
