East Sussex residents 'distrust' water firms amid ongoing sewage dumping issues

Data released by charity Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) highlighted that 91% of those asked in a consumer survey supported a ban on bonuses for CEOs of companies such as Southern Water. Whilst just one fifth (19%) are confident that the company is using their money to improve services.

Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) says the data shows the public distrust in Southern Water amid ongoing outrage at the levels of pollution occurring in seas and rivers in Sussex.

A spokesperson for Southern Water said: “We know that our performance has not been good enough, and we are working hard and investing heavily to make improvements that the service our customers and environment deserve.

“Our customers should also be reassured, contrary to what they may hear, we are spending money where it’s needed - £2bn between 2020 and 2025. We have not paid external dividends to shareholders since 2017 and bonus payments for our leadership team is linked to clear environmental and customer service targets, with detailed information available in our annual report.”

As England goes to the polls in the local elections on May 4, the survey data reveals the issues that are most likely to inform the public’s vote.

Over a quarter (26%) of respondents in the South East report that environmental issues will be their most important factor for voting.

Among these people, 6 in 10 (60%) said they cared about water pollution the most.

SAS’s new data comes just weeks after data from water companies and the Environment Agency revealed that sewage was dumped into rivers and seas in England, Scotland and Wales just under 400,000 times last year, despite 2022 being one of the driest years in decades.

HAVE YOU READ THIS?

Wanted man with links to Crawley and Uckfield located and arrested by Sussex Police

East Sussex residents who are 'old and vulnerable' unable to get their Covid-19 booster due to lack of local centres

Sussex local elections 2023: don't forget your ID – all you need to know

Maria Caulfield, the Conservative MP for Lewes, told SussexWorld that the public is now more aware of these sewage discharges from storm overflows because the Government introduced the mandatory monitoring of discharges in 2010.

The Tory minister claims this moved the number of overflows being monitored from 7% in 2010 to more than 96% in the present day.

Ms Caulfield said: “While the Government has produced the £56 billion Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan, with work starting immediately to decouple it from rainfall collection, this will take time.

"That is why last week we voted for several new measures to make sure water companies are taking immediate action. Firstly, we are lifting the cap on civil penalties for water and sewerage companies, raising them up to unlimited penalties so that polluters pay for their impact on the environment, with funds now being reinvested into further improving rivers and water bodies.

"In addition, the Government has now put targets in the Storm Overflows Reduction Plan on a statutory footing, making them legally binding so water companies have to comply.”

Ms Caulfield last week voted to back the next stage of the government’s plan to tackle sewage pollution by further strengthening legal requirements.

Ministers reconfirmed that they will be unleashing unlimited penalties so that polluters pay for their impact on the environment, with funds now being reinvested into rivers and water bodies.