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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of effectiveness of the regulation of water companies.

The Government and regulators continue to work together to hold water companies to account and we plan to strengthen regulations further, including consulting on making it easier for the Environment Agency to issue fines.

Since 2015, the Environment Agency has brought 56 prosecutions against water companies, securing fines of almost £141 million.

In November Defra and HM Treasury announced that future fines handed out to water companies will be channelled into work to improve water quality.

The Government believes in effective economic and environmental regulation of water companies. Privatisation has unlocked around £170 billion of investment to improve water services and the environment.

But where companies fail to meet their obligations, regulators have not hesitated to take action, including criminal prosecutions.