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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking with relevant authorities to improve the condition of waterways in (a) Romford constituency and (b) the UK.

The Government is committed to improving the condition of waterways in England as set out in our Plan for Water published in April 2023. The Plan for Water marks a step-change in how we manage our waters. It is delivering more investment, stronger regulation and tougher enforcement to tackle pollution and clean up our water.

With respect to the Romford constituency, the Environment Agency is working collaboratively with partners within the Roding, Beam and Ingrebourne Catchment Partnership to improve the water quality and biodiversity of waterbodies.

This includes carrying out river maintenance work such as vegetation management, operational checks on flood defence assets, treatment of invasive non-native species, bridge inspections, and inspection and maintenance of public safety measures. The Environment Agency also worked closely with the local council to form the rivers policy in their Local Plan, which now influences developments adjacent to Havering's rivers and river corridors.