Water Minister Emma Hardy highlighted the significant challenges and opportunities for the UK water sector in the keynote speech at the British Water Annual Conference in Coventry yesterday.

Ofwat has today proposed an £11 million enforcement package following its findings that Wessex Water failed to operate, maintain and upgrade its wastewater network adequately to ensure that they could cope with the flows of sewage and wastewater.

Ofwat has invited water companies to submit proposals for additional enhancement investment in AMP8 linked to demand growth, saying that ensuring sufficient treatment and network capacity to connect new housing and businesses is critical.

More than £4 million of potential bonuses were blocked by Ofwat’s new rule on water bosses’ performance related pay in the last financial year as firms chose to comply, according to the water sector economic regulator’s latest performance related executive pay report published today.

Water regulator Ofwat is in the High Court today in Manchester in a Judicial Review brought by campaign group River Action which argues that Ofwat acted unlawfully because its approach has potentially allowed water companies to charge bill payers twice for the same infrastructure improvements that should have been carried out years ago.

The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee has opened a new inquiry into the relationship between regulators and economic growth, in light of the Government’s ambition for regulators to support investment and innovation and drive growth.