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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a single social tariff for water bills.

The Government is committed to taking action to address water poverty and help vulnerable customers including older people.

All water companies have measures in place for people who struggle to pay for their water and wastewater services, including measures such as WaterSure, social tariffs, payment breaks and holidays, and debt management support. We expect all companies to make sure households are aware of the measures available to them and do everything they can to support all customers who are vulnerable.

Government is also improving protections for customers, with new and increased compensation for water companies to pay to customers and businesses in the event of issues like water supply outages, sewer flooding or low water pressure.

Furthermore, we expect companies to hold themselves accountable for their public commitment to end water poverty by 2030 and will work with the sector to ensure appropriate measures are taken to deliver this.