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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Emma Hardy)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Monmouthshire (Catherine Fookes) not only for securing this debate but for her work on the Water (Special Measures) Bill. I thank all the campaigning groups and environmental groups that have been mentioned throughout the debate for the work they do in our communities. The number of MPs who have attended the debate—or at least, the number on the Government Benches—shows how popular and important it is.
As I listened to the comments from the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Robbie Moore), I felt a little confused, because he does not seem to recognise or understand the level of anger and resentment towards his Government on this issue. He listed all the amazing achievements of the previous Government. I wonder how those stack up against the facts we have heard in the debate about the level of sewage that is being pumped into our rivers, lakes and seas, the ecological standard of many of our rivers, lakes and seas and the fact that people are so angry about the situation. I gently suggest that, rather than try to rewrite history or place alternative facts on to the record of Hansard, he would do better to acknowledge the fact that his Government got this issue so dreadfully wrong. That is why—as we have in many Departments and on many issues—we have had to come and, in this case, literally clean up the mess we have been left with.
The quality of our rivers, lakes and seas and our water is essential for supporting ecosystems, providing clean drinking water and producing our food, and of course, as Members have said, our beautiful rivers, lakes, seas and beaches are a source of pride for our communities, and we want to restore them to that. Maintaining healthy and clean water sources is vital to achieving this Government’s mission for economic growth, and the £104 billion of investment in the next five years in the water sector will help to clean up our waters and with very important job creation up and down the country.
Water systems are under massive pressure, no thanks to the 14 years of mismanagement that they have just gone through, and water bodies such as the River Wye and the River Usk in Monmouthshire face significant challenges due to agricultural run-off from intensive poultry farming, leading to high phosphate levels in our water. More broadly, my hon. Friend the Member for Monmouthshire is right to question the quality of our water due to increasing pressures from pollution, climate change and unsustainable practices.
The Government are prioritising water quality as a key element of their environmental and public health agenda. Significant steps are being taken to address pollution, enhance infrastructure and ensure clean and sustainable water sources for future generations. In his first week in office—it is slightly amusing that we are criticised by the Opposition for not solving all the problems in our first six months—the Secretary of State secured agreement from water companies and Ofwat to ringfence money for vital infrastructure upgrades, so that it cannot be diverted to shareholder payouts and bonus payments. The Government’s Water (Special Measures) Bill, which has been in Committee this week, sets out measures to crack down on water companies failing their customers, and the independent commission on the water sector regulatory system was launched by the UK and Welsh Governments in October 2024, as the third stage of this Government’s water strategy to clean up the mess we have inherited.
I will quickly respond to some of the contributions from my hon. Friends. My hon. Friend the Member for Bracknell (Peter Swallow) is right to share his upset and anger at the number of sewage spills damaging his constituency, which have continued for the past 14 years. I thank him for his support for the Water (Special Measures) Bill. Monitors will be installed and then verified independently. My hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle (Ms Minns) is a brilliant champion for her area, on both flooding and sewage, and I agree that we are blessed with many beautiful rivers, lakes and seas. I quite like the sound of that hidden river cabin; maybe that is worth a visit.
My hon. Friend the Member for Mid Cheshire (Andrew Cooper) mentioned the chronic under-investment in sewage infrastructure, and he is absolutely correct. That is why we need the £104 billion investment, to clean up and deal with the mess we have inherited. I will speak to the farming Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner), and get a precise answer to the question asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon)—I count him as an hon. Friend.
My hon. Friend the Member for Shrewsbury (Julia Buckley) talked about how appalled she is by sewage coming up through manhole covers. That sounds dreadful and I am happy to discuss that with her after the debate. I like the sound of Up Sewage Creek—that is a catchy name for a local campaign group. I thank her for her work, not just in this area. We have had many conversations and she is standing up for her community, as has been noticed and recognised.
My hon. Friend the Member for Hexham (Joe Morris) is right to highlight the damage to tourism in his beautiful constituency, and the work being done by local campaign groups. I thank him too for his support for the Water (Special Measures) Bill that will bring forward the reforms we desperately need.
My hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Alison Hume) highlighted the decline in fish stocks, in an area near my constituency that I like to visit, and the need to tackle sewage and pollution. I thank her for her support. My hon. Friend the Member for Reading West and Mid Berkshire (Olivia Bailey) highlighted the important issue of phosphate pollution, and I am happy to support her work pushing Thames Water to tackle that.
My hon. Friend the Member for South East Cornwall (Anna Gelderd) championed her beautiful area of the country and highlighted the damage done by sewage. Having listened to the speeches given by Conservative Members, one might have imagined the problem had already been solved, but in reality it has not and it is damaging her beautiful area. She also raised the dangers caused by PFAS. My hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Dave Robertson) talked about an incredibly concerning serious pollution incident. I am happy to look into the issue and find out what is happening with the EA investigation.
The theme of agriculture came up during the debate. Working with farmers to reduce agriculture pollution is key to delivery against the Government’s priority to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas. The Environment Act 2021 set a legally binding target to reduce nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment contribution from agriculture by at least 40% by 2038. Alongside developing a new statutory plan to restore nature and meet those targets, this Government are enforcing key regulations, such as the farming rules for water, and have carried out thousands of advice-led inspections through the Environment Agency.
Investment is directed to environmental land management schemes, including the sustainable farming incentive, and supported by the catchment sensitive farming programme, which are designed to help farmers protect water quality and adopt sustainable practices while maintaining viable businesses. The Secretary of State announced just last week at the Oxford farming conference that we will ensure permitted development rights work for farmers, so we can support them to reduce water pollution through improved slurry stores, anaerobic digesters and small reservoirs.
In my remaining time, I will respond to the main points raised about the River Wye. This Government are actively progressing the next steps for the River Wye, including building stronger ties and working collaboratively with the Welsh Government, the Environment Agency and Natural England, as well as local MPs, farmers and ENGOs who are already doing great work to tackle pollution. Indeed, when I held a meeting with the River Wye partnership, which the hon. Member for North Herefordshire (Ellie Chowns) and others attended, and mentioned that we would not be continuing with the previous Government’s plan, those present applauded, such was their condemnation of that plan. I do not wish to test hon. Members’ knowledge of geography, but one of the main problems with the previous Government’s plan was that it did not involve the Welsh Government. I would suggest that any plan to tackle the River Wye’s problems ought to include consulting the Administration responsible for where the river starts and ends.
Ellie Chowns
Does the Minister agree that the problem with the way the £35 million was previously supposed to be spent was that it was the opposite of the “polluter pays” principle, because it was essentially a subsidy to the most polluting industry? Will she agree to find £35 million to support nature-friendly farming in the Wye catchment to solve the issue?
Emma Hardy
I thank the hon. Lady, but I have been told I have 15 seconds left. We will develop a plan for the River Wye and I will let hon. Members know about it as soon as possible.
The unacceptable destruction of our waterways should never happen again and we are working to tackle the challenge. Efforts are already underway locally and nationally that will support restoration of rivers. The independent commission will report in June 2025. I look forward to working with hon. Members to take this important agenda forward and clear up the mess that we have been left.