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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help reduce water bills in Gloucester constituency.

The Government committed to reforming the WaterSure affordability scheme and published its response to the public consultation on 6 March 2026.  Proposed changes will expand eligibility to include disability benefits – meaning a further 53,000 low-income households will see significant savings. The reforms will also alter the way the price cap is determined, with most existing recipients seeing further savings of up to £100. Together the changes will mean around 300,000 households will see substantial help with their bills.

Water companies are also more than doubling social tariff support for vulnerable customers by 2030 and Government is working with industry to keep their schemes under review to ensure vulnerable customers receive the support they need. We are considering ways to drive more consistency and increase awareness of the support consumers can access. Defra also expects companies to hold themselves accountable for their public commitment to end water poverty by 2030.