Industry body water uk admitted consumers will have to pay to upgrade pipes to stop seweage overflowing into rivers and along the UK coastlines.
Companies are allowed to discharge untreated sewage into rivers in exceptional circumstances – for example, during heavy rainfall.
But they can be acting illegally if they pump sewage into water when the conditions are dry, or if they are not treating enough of the waste before releasing it.
why was this upgrade not done years ago??? The leaks have been happening for the last 3 years!
Water companies will have to upgrade the victorian sewage system, but this will upward our water bills. They said they will charge, in bills, about 10 billion pounds. Despite the fact they are making billions in yearly profits and paying out billions in dividends. However this 10 billion charge has first to be approved by Ofwat, the water regulatory body.
Why the Environment Secretary is failing to use her power to fine these companies 10% of their annual turnover ??
Last month the government unveiled plans to eliminate sewage dumping by 2050. If the Victorian network would take so long to fix, why were repair works not commenced much earlier??. Water firms paid shareholders £1.4 billion in dividends last year, and rewarded executives with eye watering salaries and bonuses for failure.
Environment Secretary, Ms Coffey said that any penalties for dumping would not come from rising bills. Will this be true? Will the fixing of the network will come from rising bills?
The water companies have failed to meet their legal obligations and let down consumers.
The executives could be both civil and criminal liable, and large fines should be imposed on these companies. If this forces them into bankrupcy, the Government should buy them out for pennies to ensure they are run for the benefit of the public, not shareholders.