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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will hold discussions with Ofwat on the potential impact of the levels of Thames Water's (a) debt and (b) dividend payments on its customers.

Water companies are commercial entities, and it would be inappropriate to comment further on the specific situation of any individual company.

We understand the financial pressures hardworking families are currently facing and we are pushing the sector to ensure support is available for vulnerable customers who are struggling to pay their bills.

We have also been clear that the payment of dividends that do not take into account performance and service delivery for customers and the environment is disgraceful, and we share the public’s anger on this.