Water bosses trouser £25million in bonuses despite sewage dumping scandal

21 January 2024 , 22:30

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Water firms have been dumping raw sewage in rivers, lakes and seas  (Image: Alamy Stock Photo)

Water company bosses have awarded themselves over £25million in bonuses and benefits despite dumping sewage in rivers, lakes and seas.

Nine water chief executives have been paid a staggering £10million in bonuses, £14million in incentives and £603,580 in benefits since 2019, according to analysis by Labour. At the same time, water companies plan to hike customers’ bills by an extra £156 a year by 2030 to plug a financial gap and reduce sewage discharges.

If it gets into Government, Labour plans to give the water regulator Ofwat new powers to ban the payment of bonuses to water bosses who are illegally polluting our rivers, lakes and seas with toxic sewage. By expanding Ofwat’s regulatory powers, water companies who fail to meet environmental standards on sewage pollution will face tough sanctions to ensure they cannot profit from law-breaking, the party said.

Labour said that under its new plans Ofwat could have blocked six out of nine water bosses' bonuses last year because of severe levels of illegal pollution. Last Autumn, the Government was found to have potentially broken the law by not keeping water companies in check.

The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) said guidelines "possibly allow untreated sewage discharges to occur more regularly than intended by the law", while water firms go unpunished. Ministers were accused of letting perpetrators get away with "environmental vandalism on an industrial scale".

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Shadow Environment Secretary Steve Reed said: “This Conservative Government has wilfully turned a blind eye to corruption at the heart of the water industry. The result is stinking, toxic sewage destroying our countryside, and consumers facing higher bills while failing water bosses pocket millions in bonuses.

“Labour will put failing water companies under special measures. We will strengthen regulation so law-breaking water bosses face criminal charges, and give the regulator new powers to block the payment of any bonuses until water bosses have cleaned up their filth.”

He added: “With Labour, the polluter - not the public - will pay.”

Sophie Huskisson