Alistair Strathern, Labour MP for Hitchin has strongly reviled the previous Government’s 14 years of neglect that has led to “a disgusting degradation of our rivers and waterways”.
His intervention follows the publication of shocking new data revealing sewage dumping in Hitchin doubled in 2023, the final full year of the Conservative government. A damning legacy.
Today (Wednesday 23rd October), Strathern welcomed the UK and Welsh Labour Governments' launch of an Independent Water Commission, aimed at overhauling the water industry and tightening regulations to clean up our rivers and lakes after over a decade of increasing dilapidation.
Labour’s decisive action includes holding water companies accountable, supporting new legislation to prosecute reckless water bosses and ban their bonuses.
Commenting, Alistair Strathern MP said:
"I know residents in Hitchin and right across the east of England are furious about the disgusting degradation of our rural waterways and the hollowing out of reservoir capacity nationwide.
“It’s disgusting that sewage dumping in Hitchin has doubled since 2022. The scale of this environmental disaster is completely unacceptable.
“I welcome the new Government and the Secretary of State’s leadership on these issues, and I’m committed to working with them to crack down on polluters and help restore our waterways."
Launching the review, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Steve Reed said:
“After years of neglect, our waterways are now in an unacceptable state and our water system urgently needs fixing.
“That is why today we have launched a Water Commission to attract the investment we need to clean up our waterways and speed up infrastructure delivery.
"Following the Commission’s conclusion, the Government will introduce ambitious legislation to restore confidence in the sector once and for all.”
ENDS
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