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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that the alternative of bringing new water to the Thames Valley via a Severn Thames Transfer pipeline is considered effectively by the Ofwat/RAPID scrutiny process.

The Environment Agency’s National Framework for water resources, published in 2020, identified that between 2025 and 2050 around 3,435 million additional litres of water per day will be needed for public water supply.

Water companies have a statutory duty to provide a secure supply of water for customers, efficiently and economically. Statutory water resources management plans show how companies will continue to meet this duty and manage water supply and demand for at least the next 25 years. In their plans, water companies must consider all options, including demand management and water resources infrastructure.

Collaborative regional water resources groups and water companies are preparing their water resources plans for consultations during 2022. Thames Water will formally consult publicly on its draft water resources management plan at the end of 2022, on which, both Ofwat and the Environment Agency are statutory consultees. Ofwat/RAPID’s ongoing scrutiny of proposed strategic water resources schemes will also improve the statutory plans.