Anneliese Dodds MP has welcomed the biggest overhaul of Britain’s water sector in a generation. This comes as the Government gears up to introduce the Water Reform Bill into Parliament.
Anneliese says: “Oxford East residents have faced leaks, outages, and sewage pollution for too long. Water companies have been marking their own homework and paying out dividends to shareholders while letting our water networks crumble.”
“We’ve seen such poor maintenance in Oxford that the underpasses in parts of the ring road turned into a swimming pool back in summer 2022. That was followed by Heyford Hill roundabout coming underwater later that year. Over just the last months we’ve had the Rymers Lane burst pipe and interruptions to water supply over the festive period in Marston, Northway and Barton Park. These repeated incidents are why a new single water regulator with real teeth is so urgently needed – and this is exactly what Labour in power is delivering.”
Labour’s planned reforms put prevention first, requiring water companies like Thames Water to plan for the long-term and limit disruption. The new regulator will introduce an ‘MOT-style’ system of regular health checks for our water infrastructure. This means that pipes, pumps, and treatment works will be checked routinely instead of only when problems arise. Dedicated supervisory teams for each water company will be established, with continuous oversight to spot problems earlier, and no‑notice inspections will prevent water companies from hiding poor performance.
Too often, when customers have complained, nothing has happened – even when companies have failed to deliver basic services. The new and independent Water Ombudsman will end what has been a system of toothless redress, delivering swift and legally binding resolutions. Water companies will need to deliver much higher standards of customer service, making it a core measure of their performance.
Boosting smart meter use and mandatory water-efficiency labels will also help households track water use, cut waste, and lower bills – saving families money while protecting our precious water supplies.
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Notes to editors:
- The White Paper ‘A New Vision for Water’ sets out the Labour Government’s once-in-a-generation plans to reform the water sector and the wider water system. It can be read at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-new-vision-for-water-white-paper
- More information is also available at: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/water-reform-a-new-vision-for-water/
