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 updating guidelines on the level of poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances in drinking water.

The Drinking Water Inspectorate’s (DWI) guideline value on individual types of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) of 100 nanograms per litre was agreed with the UK Health Security Agency to be a robust level with an appropriate margin to ensure our drinking water is safe to drink. There is no evidence of PFAS concentrations above this value in drinking water supplies. The DWI has provided further direction to water companies to develop appropriate and focused strategies to protect drinking water supplies and work is continuing across Government to help us assess levels of PFAS occurring in the environment, their sources and potential risks to inform future policy and regulatory approaches.