England’s taps could run dry within 20 years, warn MPS

THE bodies responsible for water supply have been accused of “taking their eye off the ball” and leaving parts of England at serious risk of running out of water in the next 20 years.

Regulator Ofwat, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Environment Agency (EA) will need to take urgent action to make sure taps do not run dry, the public accounts committee said.

The committee warned that the construction of HS2 poses a “particular risk” when it comes to abstracting too much water from rivers and other sources. The committee was particularly damning of Defra. More than three billion litres a day are lost to leakage, in a situation the committee said was “wholly unacceptable”.

The EA has been warning for more than a year that the country risks running out of water within 25 years as a result of the changing climate, population growth and a lack of investment.

But the committee said the Government had failed to develop a national message to persuade consumers to use less water. A recent campaign launched by the EA relies solely on voluntary contributions from the water industry.

Meg Hillier MP, the committee chairman, said: “It is very hard to imagine, in this country, turning the tap and not having enough clean, drinkable water come out – but that is exactly what we now face. Continued inaction by the water industry means we continue to lose one fifth of our daily supply to leaks.”

A Defra spokesman said: “We absolutely recognise the need to safeguard our water supplies for future generations, which is why our National Framework for Water Resources sets out a bold vision for bringing together consumers, businesses and industry to sustainably protect our water supplies. We are already taking a tougher approach to poor performance and wastage within the water industry, while also finding ways to increase supply.”