Drought Conditions: England

Robbie Moore Excerpts

Friday 16th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Robbie Moore (Keighley and Ilkley) (Con)]

I thank the Minister for advance sight of her statement. Today’s update reinforces what farmers, rural communities and households have known for months: England is in the grip of a drought, and the Government have been slow to react. Eleven areas are now in drought, with Yorkshire the latest to be declared. Ten water companies have hosepipe bans in force. Drought-related environmental incidents have already overtaken the totals of 2022 and 2025. This is the third drought in five years. It should not have caught the Government off guard, but here we are on a sitting Friday, listening to the Water Minister roll out an emergency statement, effectively saying she has been busy having meetings.

On 31 July, two and a half months ago, the shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Louth and Horncastle (Victoria Atkins), wrote to the Environment Agency setting out six practical steps. Ministers have since said that they will adopt some of them, which is welcome, but it is highly surprising that in this statement from a Minister in the Department that represents food policy, there was not one mention of the impact the drought is having on our farmers and our growers. Why was that?

The key questions remain. The Government talk a big game about their new water Bill and taking back public control, yet the primary action announced today is instructing water companies to conduct daily monitoring. Does that mean they have not been doing that to date? If the national drought group has been meeting regularly since August, why are water companies only now being told to step up their drought planning? Why is the Minister willing to relax strict environmental regulations for water companies when they have failed to protect customer supplies through not undertaking significant investment in dealing with leakage and enhancing water storage? What does this say to the many households that are facing increased water bills?

The Minister highlights upgrades in investment and promises to build nine new major reservoirs, but she has also admitted that this is a decade-long journey. Our communities, our farmers and our businesses are facing severe challenges today. When exactly will the first reservoir be built, and will she release a timeframe for each? Some on-farm reservoirs are reporting being a fifth full or less heading into winter, yet farmers are still waiting for the reopened water management grant, and planning and licensing hurdles to building water storage remain far too high.

The Government announced a £65 million drought package, but what has happened to it? It was money already sitting unallocated in the farming budget. Most of it was poured into the sustainable farming incentive, and look what happened to that. Will the Minister update us on how she is making it easier for farmers to have on-farm reservoirs? The Opposition will work constructively with anyone serious about protecting our food and water security, but we will hold this Government to account when they fall short, and right now they are falling short—significantly short—of what farmers, rural communities and our households expect.

[Emma Hardy]

It is a shame that the Opposition spokesperson is not taking this as seriously as required. To respond briefly to his points about what this Government have done, there are many things I can do—unfortunately, I cannot make it rain, but what I can do is ensure that this Government are prepared, and that is exactly what we have been doing.

In February this year, DEFRA and Cobra ran a cross-Government drought exercise to test the current response arrangements, with lessons learned from the previous year. We have been planning for this since we came into government, because this Government actually believe that climate change is real. We are not a Government of climate change deniers. We are not a Government who wish to repeal the Climate Change Act 2008 and think that when it is sunny, we should just enjoy more barbecues.

This Government have been preparing for drought since I became Water Minister. In February, we ran the cross-Government exercise, and we have been working with water companies on emergency drought measures. Last winter, a year ago, regulators and water companies were already looking to take action because we know that this is the new normal when it comes to our weather. That is why we are preparing for it.

The shadow Minister asks what we are doing to support farmers, but it is this Government who are giving £15 million for on-farm reservoirs, it this Government who are making the planning system easier so that farmers can build reservoirs, and it is this Government who are looking into flexible abstraction so that farmers can fill the reservoirs that we are helping them build. Frankly, it was the previous Government who failed to prepare for any of that during their 14 years in office.