The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee has sharply criticised the Government for “disappointing” responses to the recent PAC report on water regulation.

Writing to Paul Kissack , Permanent Secretary at the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 1^st December, Committee Chair Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP, flagged up a number of serious concerns, particularly with regard to how the Environment Agency (EA) dealt with pollution incidents.

“One of the most concerning impressions we were left with was of an under-resourced and apparently directionless and demotivated Environment Agency at a loss as to how to begin to address the situation,” the letter says.

Lack of transparency from EA

The MPs point out that the EA have only committed to publishing planning application processing times but have no plans to “set out transparently” how many housing and commercial developments the EA objects to. The Committee is asking for an explanation of how the number of housing developments held up on the basis of wastewater and water capacity constraints are being monitored and reportd on, and what action is being taken to resolve the constraints.

The Committee also questions the EA’s failure to explain how it will ensure it is actively monitoring and enforcing compliance with discharge permits, saying the EA’s response simply refers to several actions which were in train prior to the most recent price determination.

The letter refers to a recent roundtable discussion PAC held to explore the water quality challenges faced by the public across the country, including campaigners, citizen scientists and representatives of water users impacted by poor water quality.

PAC heard “deeply worrying testimony about pollution causing health problems” , pointing out that the country is in a position where citizen scientists are having to try to fill in the gaps in monitoring and reporting widespread problems.

Overall picture includes lack of accountability of water companies, worsening water quality, crumbling infrastructure and lack of enforcement action 

The letter says:

“While we were inspired by the commitment and passion of those volunteers and campaigners we spoke to, the overall picture was of worsening water quality, crumbling infrastructure, major pollution events only detected by dedicated citizen scientists, lack of enforcement action or legal consequences for breaches of building regulations, and lack of challenge to and accountability of water companies.”

“Could you please tell me if you or your senior staff ever meet with local communities affected by wastewater issues, for example through Catchment Partnerships, and if not, whether you plan on doing so?”, Sir Geoffrey pointedly asks.

The Committee is also concerned about gaps between the data available to water companies and the regulators which limits their ability to identify issues and act on them quickly. At the same time, lack of data about individual infrastructure elements that make up the wastewater system means even the water companies don’t know what they own and are responsible for maintaining.

“Without reliable and transparent data available on the problem, how can the public bodies involved hold companies to account or develop wider solutions and target them where they’re needed?”, the letter asks.

Asking how the Environment Agency will be held to account for how it focuses available resources on addressing wastewater issues and for ensuring projects it undertakes are achieving value for money, the PAC is also raising its concerns about the Government’s intention to merge the water sector regulators, with regard to:

• what is the timeline for implementing the accountability framework;
• how will you ensure that the new regulator is fully independent of the water companies;
• and that its staff have the appropriate legal and environmental expertise?

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP has asked Paul Kissack to provide a response to the letter in January, “as soon as possible after you have responded to the Independent Water Commission.“