Independent Water Commission

Greg Smith Excerpts
Monday 21st July 2025

(1 day, 18 hours ago)

Commons Chamber
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Steve Reed Portrait Steve Reed
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I agree with my hon. Friend; it is a shame that no Reform Members have turned up, although perhaps it is not surprising because they did not bother mentioning this issue in their manifesto either. We did hear at the weekend that their leader, the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage), wants to hand £50 billion of taxpayers’ money to the owners of water companies. If we add that to its existing £80 billion of unfunded commitments, it comes to £130 billion. By my reckoning, that is almost double the amount that Liz Truss bet and lost on the economy when she crashed it and sent mortgages, prices and rents skyrocketing. Reform wants to double down on the bad bet.

Greg Smith Portrait Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)
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I am genuinely all ears for any practical steps that can be taken to build on the Environment Act 2021 to clean up our waterways, but may I pick up the Secretary of State’s comments on the role, as he put it, of citizen scientists and local communities? In my constituency, water heroes like Doug Kennedy, who I joined in Nether Winchendon testing the River Thame a few weeks ago, have decades of real local knowledge on our waterways, as do the volunteers of the River Thame Conservation Trust. That powerhouse of local knowledge will be replicated up and down the country. Rather than just involving them as consultees, will the Secretary of State reflect on how they can get properly locked into local solutions to clean up our waterways?

Steve Reed Portrait Steve Reed
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I support what the hon. Gentleman says about the Environment Act, which is a worthwhile piece of legislation passed by the previous Government. I also support what he says about ensuring that people have more involvement at community level. I will certainly take that on board as we work through the consultation.