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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to reform the water abstraction system, including in relation to abstraction volumes and licence conditions.

Since 2008 the Environment Agency has made changes to over 270 abstraction licences to prevent over 27 billion litres of water per year being removed from the environment. This is enough water to supply half a million people with water for one year.

In due course we will publish a water abstraction plan that will detail how we will manage abstraction in a way that is modern, fairer and more resilient and that protects the environment. The plan will set out how the Environment Agency will modify abstraction licences to reflect better the needs of the environment.