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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the length of water abstraction licences to incentivise investment in winter reservoir storage.

The Environment Agency is legally required to include a time limit on all new abstraction licences and permanent licence variations.

When the Environment Agency grants a licence for the first time, the licence duration is usually between 6 and 18 years. On renewal, the normal duration will be 12 years. In exceptional cases licences may be issued with a longer time limit if the applicant meets four government tests. Further information can be found in the guidance note WR253 Long duration water abstraction licences on gov.uk.

The Environment Agency would consider a long duration licence for a winter storage reservoir providing the applicant can meet the four tests.

We are working to move the water resources licensing regime into the Environmental Permitting Regulations. We consulted on the move in Autumn 2021 and are considering the responses. The consultation included proposals to remove the requirement on the Environment Agency to issue abstraction permits with a time limit.