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 has taken to monitor the steps water companies are taking to ensure drought preparedness.

Water companies are required to produce drought plans which are a statutory requirement and are expected to be reviewed annually. The Environment Agency (EA) as the regulator request an industry wide annual drought preparedness report every April. This covers companies’ readiness to respond to drought, updates on work it has done to improve its readiness, such as drought permit environmental assessments or training and exercises.

In response to the dry weather this year, water companies are ready to or already have implemented communications regarding drought preparedness. In some areas, companies have stepped up their engagement with customers on using water wisely, managing demand and taking efforts to reduce leakages as part of their drought preparation measures.

The EA continue to work with water companies to ensure they follow their drought plans. Water companies are continuing to attend the National Drought Group meetings to update regulators and stakeholders on the latest dry weather impacts and drought preparedness this summer.