Lib Dems vow to replace Ofwat with ‘tough’ regulator

The Liberal Democrats have pledged to replace Ofwat with a new “tough” regulator in a bid to eliminate raw sewage being dumped into the UK’s waterways.

Meeting in Bournemouth for its annual conference the opposition party endorsed its pre-manifesto policy paper, entitled For a Fair Deal.

The paper includes a call for a ban on water companies dumping raw sewage into rivers, lakes and coastal areas as part of a wider pledge to hold big firms to account by giving them a “duty to protect the environment”.

The motion approved by delegates condemned the Conservative government for allowing raw sewerage to be pumped into rivers, lakes and coastal areas.

The policy paper will form the basis of next year’s general election manifesto for the Liberal Democrats, who could hold the balance of power given the number of seats Labour must win to form a new government.

The policy paper also pledges to strengthen the Office for Environmental Protection, provide more funding to the Environment Agency and Natural England, transform water companies into public benefit companies, ban bonuses for water bosses until discharges and leaks end, and replace Ofwat with a ‘tough’ new regulator with new powers to prevent sewage dumps.

The Liberal Democrats also called for a new Blue Flag status to protect Britain’s rivers from sewage dumping.

Under the new policy, rivers could be designated with the special status to protect them from pollution, including sewage discharges.

Water companies that continued to dump their sewage into Blue Flag rivers would face punitive fines under the policy, which is designed to provide reassurance that certain environmental standards are being met, meaning they can be swum in without fear of getting sick.

Lib Dem environment spokesperson Tim Farron said: “Local families and dog walkers are seeing their favourite local streams and rivers turned into cesspits, while popular tourist destinations face being ruined.

“It’s time for a new, legally enforceable Blue Flag status to protect our precious rivers from this sewage scandal. This could be funded by a sewage tax on the water companies making huge profits, along with punitive fines for those who refuse to play by the rules.”

The Lib Dem policy paper also calls for the establishment of a national Net Zero Delivery Authority.

In previous policy papers, the party has proposed that the new authority would oversee the delivery of net zero, co-ordinate cross-departmental working, and facilitate the devolution of powers and resources to local authorities.

Sponsored jointly by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Treasury, it would also co-ordinate national and local strategies and provide information to central government about how projects can be delivered on the ground.

Wera Hobhouse, Lib Dem spokesperson for energy & climate change, has previously said in Parliament that the mooted body would be “similar” to the Office for Net Zero proposed by Conservative MP Chris Skidmore in his government-commissioned independent review of net zero earlier this year.

The energy and climate change section of the policy paper also calls for free retrofits for low-income homes and generous tax incentives for other households to carry out such works.

And the paper reiterates the party’s 2019 manifesto commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2045 and set a target for 80% of the UK’s electricity to be generated from renewables by 2030.