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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with Thames Water on the use of their emergency loan.

The Government and Ofwat – the financial regulator for the water sector – are carefully monitoring the situation, and Ofwat is working closely with the company to strengthen their long-term financial resilience within the context of its license and broader statutory obligations.

Fundamentally it is for the company to solve their issues of financial resilience. It is not for the Government to tell a private company how to manage their finances.

It would be inappropriate to comment on ongoing legal proceedings. We prepare for a range of scenarios across our regulated industries – including water – like any responsible Government would.