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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has put a contingency plan in place in the event that Thames Water becomes financially unsustainable.

The Government and Ofwat – the financial regulator for the water sector – are carefully monitoring the situation with Thames Water, and Ofwat continues to engage with Thames Water to support it in improving its resilience within the context of its licence and broader statutory obligations.

The company remains stable. However, we do want to provide reassurance that we are prepared for a range of scenarios across our regulated industries – including water – as any responsible Government should be.