Lewes MP welcomes government's sewage spills strategy - critics label plan as 'cruel joke'

George Eustice, the environment secretary, announced that water companies would have to invest £56bn over 25 years into a long-term programme to tackle storm sewage discharges by 2050.

According to the Tories, the Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan, will revolutionise how water companies tackle the number of discharges of untreated sewage.

Maria Caulfield, MP for the Lewes constituency, said: “I welcome this plan which will mean that water companies will face strict targets and must completely eliminate the harm any sewage discharge causes to the environment.

"The current use of sewage overflows is completely unacceptable, and I will continue to push our water company to tackle them as soon as possible.”

The Liberal Democrats say investment will end up on customers’ bills and public will be paying for executives’ bonuses.

Water companies, such as Southern Water, had been accused of ‘environmental vandalism’ after claims they have failed to monitor sewage water discharges at popular East Sussex beaches.

Last week, Southern Water apologised after pollution warnings were put in place for dozens of beaches across the coastline – after the water supplier discharged overflows to protect homes, schools, businesses and hospitals from flooding.

The Government has said it has made clear that companies cannot profit from environmental damage, and Maria Caulfield MP voted for measures in the Environment Act to give more powers to Ofwat, the water company regulator, to enforce that.

Ofwat is now consulting on measures that would ensure that water companies are transparent about how executive pay and dividends align to the delivery of services to customers, including environmental performance.

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Environment Secretary George Eustice said “This is the first government to take action to end the environmental damage caused by sewage spills. We will require water companies to protect everyone who uses our water for recreation, and ensure storm overflows pose no threat to the environment.

“Water companies will need to invest to stop unacceptable sewage spills so our rivers and coast lines can have greater protection than ever before.”