UK water firms to face fines up to £250m for dumping sewage

Environment Agency’s maximum penalty for each individual breach of the rules will rise from £250,000

A jetty beneath which raw sewage had reportedly been discharged after heavy rain on August 17 in Seaford, England. Getty

As part of new plans to clean up UK seas and rivers, water companies that dump sewage will face fines of up to £250 million ($282m), the new environment secretary has vowed.

If water firms do not do more to prevent effluent flowing into open water, he will institute an increase in civil fines — up to 1,000-fold — Ranil Jayawardena told company chiefs.

“On my first day in office I met water company bosses to give them their report card. I’ll be polite: could do better," he told the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham on Monday.

“I asked them to write to me with their plans to accelerate investment in infrastructure. They did and now they must deliver.

“Privatisation has put in £170 billion of investment into our water infrastructure already, and the private sector will now put in another £56 billion more.

“And, if they don’t deliver, I can confirm to you today that we will take forward plans to lift the Environment Agency’s maximum civil fine for each individual breach of the rules from up to just £250,000, to up to £250 million.”

Heavy rain causes flooding in parts of the UK - in pictures

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  A car negotiates a flooded section of road in London, as torrential rain and thunderstorms hit many parts of the UK. Getty Images

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  Pedestrians get soaked crossing London Bridge in the capital. Britain's Met Office issued multiple flood warnings. EPA

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  Sheltering from the rain at the seafront in Seaford, East Sussex, on England's south coast. Britain had been suffering a heatwave, with drought declared for parts of the country. Getty

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  A pedestrian is caught in the open in London during the downpour. The Met Office issued yellow thunderstorm warning forecasts for parts of England and Wales. PA

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  A pedestrian tries to keep dry crossing the road in a very wet London. Getty

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  Pedestrians shelter from torrential rain at the entrance to Blackhorse Road London Underground station, in north-east London. Getty

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  A fire engine negotiates a flooded section of road in London. Getty

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  A car sends floodwater spraying in its wake in London. The rain eased later in the week. Getty

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  The gym at the Houses of Parliament in central London is flooded after torrential rain hit the capital. PA

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  Pedestrians brave the downpour to cross Millennium Bridge in London, with St Paul's Cathedral almost obscured by the rain. PA

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  Parts of Clapham Common, in south London, are flooded by the downpour, while areas of parched grass bear testimony to the recent drought. Reuters

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  Pedestrians find a dry path in London. AP

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  Covers protect the wicket during the Royal London Cup match between Essex Eagles and Yorkshire Vikings at Cloudfm County Ground in Chelmsford, south-east England. Getty

The plan involves launching a formal consultation on lifting the current £250,000 cap for Environment Agency fines for water firms that breach environmental rules.

There has been growing public outrage in recent years at the volume of raw or partially treated sewage pumped into the UK’s rivers and coastal waters.

Water firms are being criticised for not investing money back into the UK’s outdated water infrastructure, with mounting pressure on ministers to intervene.

Under Boris Johnson’s leadership, the Conservative government outlined plans to crack down on spills by requiring utility companies to invest £56 billion over 25 years to combat the impact of storm overflows.

Thunderstorms and heavy rain bring Britain's heatwave to an end - in pictures

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  Lightning strikes during a thunderstorm in Dundee, in eastern Scotland. Reuters

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  Flooding in Port Talbot, south Wales. Yellow weather warnings are in place for most of the UK. PA

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  A pedestrian with an umbrella and Big Ben are reflected in a puddle near the Houses of Parliament, in central London. AP

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  A boy struggles with an umbrella amid blustery conditions on the South Bank, in central London. PA

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  A man leaps over a puddle as shoppers rush through a heavy downpour in London. Getty Images

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  Tourists in London. The Met Office has issued a yellow thunderstorm warning for England and Wales. AP

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  People caught in the rain on the Millennium Bridge in London. PA

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  A woman opposite the Elizabeth Tower, also known as Big Ben, in London. AP

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  Visitors to the National Waterways Museum use umbrellas during a spell of rain in Ellesmere Port. Getty Images

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  A woman walks in the rain in central London. EPA

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  Flooding in Tullow, in Ireland. Heavy downpours and flooding have hit parts of the country as thunderstorms marked the end of the heatwave. PA

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  Lightning striking across Wishaw, North Lanarkshire. PA

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  A resident makes his way through the flooding in Tullow in Ireland. PA

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  Members of staff at The Milky Way in Devon, clearing out floodwater inside the premises, as heavy rain and flooding hit areas in Cornwall and Devon. PA

At Labour’s conference last week, shadow environment secretary Jim McMahon said water bosses would face prison sentences for the worst pollution incidents under a Labour government.

He said his party would introduce a legally binding target to end 90 per cent of sewage discharges by 2030 and stronger sanctions and fines for bosses and companies who fail to do so.

Labour also attacked Prime Minister Liz Truss’s record while she was environment secretary, blaming her for £24 million of funding cuts for environmental protection, including surveillance of water companies to prevent sewage dumping.