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 to tackle toxic lead pipes in housing in (a) England, (b) East Anglia and (c) South West Norfolk.

Lead pipes have not been permitted since 1970, but they may be present in older properties.

To reduce the risk of lead leaching into water, this Government expects water companies to treat the water. Any failure of the lead standard is investigated thoroughly.

In Defra’s Strategic Policy Statement to Ofwat, we supported action by the water industry to trial approaches to reduce exposure to lead which have been agreed in water companies’ business plans for 2025-2030. Two Green Recovery projects, approved by Ofwat, are also trialling replacement of customer supply pipes made of lead.