Getting seriously tough with water companies that pollute rivers is a breakthrough that will make a real difference, a Shropshire MP has claimed.
And, at the same time, new measures to combat flooding in and around Shrewsbury will also produce “substantial improvements for years to come,” she says in a statement.
Shrewsbury MP Julia Buckley said: “I see the scourge of water pollution and the menace of flooding as the two big dangers that our town and its communities face from the River Severn, but I see significant breakthroughs now on both fronts that will greatly improve the situation.”
Mrs Buckley – recently elected as Chair of the cross-party River Severn Partnership Caucus – added: “Representing a town that’s almost encircled by the River Severn, and mindful of how flooding has caused absolute misery to generations of people here, and also how seriously hazardous water pollution is to the health and wellbeing of our town, how could these topics not be high on my agenda?”
On water pollution, the MP said that many people may not be aware that the Government’s Water (Special Measures) Bill, introduced into Parliament last September, significantly strengthens the power of the water industry regulators.
Delivering a speech in Parliament on Wednesday, Mrs Buckley said: “This Bill will help us to crack down on those who pollute the River Severn and other rivers, and help us to hold companies to account. It allows us to get seriously tough with these companies.”
She said: “We’ve made it a criminal offence to pollute water courses, with CEOs of water companies being personally criminally liable.
“Let us not forget that in 2024 there were 1,658 sewage discharges into waterbodies in Shrewsbury from 57 storm overflows. In total these discharges lasted for 8,704 hours. But we now have electronic automatic sensors installed. They monitor sewage dumping objectively with live data feeding into the regulator OFWAT’s website 24/7.”
Mrs Buckley said: “Water companies have five years to get their act together and show how they can update their infrastructure. This will make a massive difference.”
“Meanwhile, on the flooding front, we now have our Labour Government’s new funding to bring solutions to fruition. We recently secured £16 million for Shrewsbury’s flood defences, another big breakthrough, and real progress is now being made.
“So, of course, I was pleased to recently reconvene and also to be elected Chair of the River Severn Partnership Caucus – a cross-party group of MPs who have the River Severn running through their constituencies and who have both residents and businesses directly affected by the constant pressures of a flooding river.”
Mrs Buckley said the group looks at nature-based, holistic solutions to flooding, and that input and assistance from local groups and projects is welcomed. She added: “Here too we are making good progress.”
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