Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Environment Agency has undertaken modelling of wastewater discharges from the Meadfoot sewage outfall in Torquay to assess the interaction of those discharges with tidal movements within the last five years.

The beach is monitored by the EA during the bathing season which runs from mid-May to September. The EA monitors the bathing water for bacteria. The results from Meadfoot Beach put it in the highest class for clean water quality: it is rated as excellent.

The EA’s local Bathing Water data teams look at all data as they become available through the bathing season. Should they see any results that fall short of what is expected for that beach they will investigate the reasons and act on any findings.

Polluting our waterways is unacceptable. We have published the Water White Paper, a new once-in-a-generation plan to overhaul the water system. It sets out clear powers for the new regulator, delivering tougher oversight and stronger accountability for water companies.