Home / Sources / Select Committees / 14th Special Report - Regulation of the water industry: Gov…
Select committee: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee

14th Special Report - Regulation of the water industry: Government and Ofwat Responses to the Committee’s Eighth Report

Published 21 December 2018

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Regulation of the Water Industry inquiry Report on parliament.uk ↗

At a glance

The government's response

This document responds to 8th Report - Regulation of the water industry.

This is the government's response, published 21 December 2018.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The Government responds to each recommendation without a blanket acceptance, endorsing some industry commitments, planning a call for evidence on a per capita consumption target, and keeping some regulatory arrangements under review.

  • On leakage, the Government "endorses the water industry's commitment to halve leakage by 2050" and will review progress every five years, rather than adopting the Committee's 2040 date.
  • On demand, it will "launch a call for evidence" on a national, non-binding per capita consumption target, alongside a consultation on supporting policy options including the future role of metering.
  • On water transfers, it says Ofwat "concluded that at present amending the existing incentives was not justified", and that Ofwat and the other regulators will explore barriers to trading.
  • On sewage overflows, it will "keep the current system of regulating and controlling sewer overflows under review and consider proposals to minimise CSO discharges". On regulatory review, it points to a National Infrastructure Commission review concluding in summer 2019.

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error

Sources