The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee will hear evidence in person later today from senior executives at Ofwat, Water UK, CCW, DEFRA and the Environment Agency as part of its current inquiry into water sector regulation.
The public hearing, (preceded by 90 minute private discussion), will take evidence from the following witnesses :
3:30pm:
- David Henderson Chief Executive at Water UK
- Dr Mike Keil Chief Executive at Consumer Council for Water
- John Earwaker Director at First Economics
4:15pm:
- Dame Tamara Finkelstein DBE Permanent Secretary at Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
- David Hill Director General for Strategy and Water at Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
- Philip Duffy Chief Executive at Environment Agency
- David Black Chief Executive at Ofwat
The Committee launched its inquiry into water sector regulation in March 2025.
Following an earlier inquiry, a 2020 report on water supply and demand management by the PAC warned that England faces a serious risk of running out of water within 20 years, and called on Defra, Ofwat and the Environment Agency to take urgent action to ensure a reliable water supply in the years ahead. It also found that the government at the time had failed to be clear with water companies on how they should balance investment in infrastructure with reducing customer bills.
A separate report published by the PAC in May last year following its inquiry Delivering value from government investment in major projects warned that the UK Government and wider economy lack the necessary skills and capacity to deliver ambitious plans for major infrastructure over the next five years.
In April 2025 the National Audit Office (NAO published a highly critical report on regulation in the water sector saying that Defra and water regulators have failed to drive necessary investment for the sector, which now faces significant environmental, supply and infrastructure challenges. The NAO report examined the effectiveness of the regulatory regime in delivering long-term objectives and attracting the investment needed in the sector.
Based on the NAO report, the PAC will hear from experts and senior officials from Defra, the Environment Agency and Ofwat on subjects including outcomes the industry needs to achieve and levels of investment required, and the current effectiveness of regulation.
Click here to watch the Committee hearing today live on Parliament TV. The recording of the hearing will also be available to view afterwards.
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