MP welcomes once-in-a-generation overhaul to the water system to cut water bills

Marie Tidball MP, has welcomed the Government’s once-in-a-generation plan to overhaul the water system. The Water White Paper has been unveiled, including landmark reforms to reduce water bills, protect households, and properly hold water companies to account.

The new plans include wider rollout of water smart meters and mandatory efficiency labels, on items like dishwashers and washing machines, which will help households monitor their water use and cut costs. Altogether, these measure deliver savings of over £125 million on water and energy bills over the next decade. This means an average of 17% lower water bills for households.

The reforms also include a new single regular, with tough powers to properly hold water companies to account. The new regulator will introduce an ‘MOT’ approach for water company infrastructure, requiring health checks on pipes, pumps and more. This forward-looking approach means no more waiting to act, spotting problems before they happen and preventing water shortages.

For the first time in two decades, a Chief Engineer will sit inside the new single water regulator. Their job is to bring back the hands-on checks of water infrastructure that Ofwat has failed to provide; ending the days of water firms marking their own homework, resulting in crumbling pipes and unreliable services. These reforms put prevention first, requiring companies and bosses to plan for the long-term.

The new measures also establish a new independent, and powerful Water Ombudsman to ensure customer complaints are taken seriously and resolved quickly. If a complaint is not resolved by the water company, the ombudsman will deliver a legally binding resolution.

This announcement follows action already taken by the Government to ban unfair bonusses for water bosses. Under the Tories, Yorkshire Water's top bosses were paid nearly £13 million in bonuses, despite almost 2,045 incidents of sewage spillages - amounting to 18,000 hours of sewage spilled into the beautiful River Don.

To further protect customers and clean up our waterways, the government has also secured a record £104 billion of private investment - the largest ever since privatisation, to cut sewage discharges by nearly half over the next five years. This money will now be ringfenced for new pipes and treatment work, not shareholder payouts.

Marie Tidball MP said:

“These new plans set out the bold reforms our communities have been calling for.For too long, water companies have been allowed to mark their own homework while bills have increased, infrastructure has crumbled and pollution has blighted our local rivers and reservoirs.These reforms finally mean lower water bills, real accountability, and no more excuses for water companies.These are once-in-a-generation reforms for our water system - tough oversight and real accountability.Water companies will have nowhere to hide, customers will get the service they deserve, and investors will see a system built for the future.This builds on the tough action we’ve already delivered, from record investment to banning unfair bonuses.”