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

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to construct a national water grid.

The Government recognises the need to increase the long term security of water supplies. Water transfers can play a strong role in securing resilience, alongside other new infrastructure and the reduction of demand and leakage. The Government made this clear in its strategic policy statement to Ofwat and in the 25 Year Environment Plan.

There is already a large quantity of water transferred across the country, giving water companies greater flexibility to meet demand. Water companies have recently consulted on their draft water resource management plans in which further regional transfer schemes are being considered.

Interim Parliamentary Under Secretary of State David Rutley made clear the importance of joined up working between regulators and industry to achieve the best solutions for future resilience in his recent letter to the chief executive of Ofwat, the economic regulator. The letter provided the Government’s initial view on the National Infrastructure Commission’s report on water and has been published on GOV.UK.