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Calls for PM to clamp down on river sewage

Sophie Ladd
BBC The River Wye, with pebbles in front of its shore, and trees behind. The sky is blue and cloudy.BBC
Environmental charities claim water companies are dumping sewage during normal weather conditions

Water charities are calling on new Prime Minister Andy Burnham to do more to prevent sewage and pollution ending up in our rivers.

Data compiled by environmental charity the Rivers Trust suggests there were sewage spillages in North Cotswolds rivers for at least 3,470 hours in the past year.

Campaigners say one of the big culprits is Thames Water, who service most of the North Cotswolds area.

A spokesperson for the water company said it is not "'dumping' sewage". They said storm overflows discharge into waterways after heavy rain "and this is heavily diluted".

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Professor Peter Hammon sits ebhind his desk which has two screens with maps and graphs of data.
Prof Peter Hammond has published numerous reports analysing spill data from water companies

Prof Peter Hammond, a campaigner for the charity Windrush Against Sewage Pollution, says 80% of sewage spills in the UK happen during normal weather conditions, meaning they could be illegal.

James Wallace, head of River Action, said: "The river temperature has gone up considerably and that makes it even worse because it's like an incubator.

"So, all these bugs in there are now more prevalent. The light and the life of the river is snuffed out and wildlife can't survive and obviously plant life, and then it affects human health because of the amount of E. coli and other nasty bacteria."

He wants the Environment Agency to be "given its teeth back" so it can prosecute companies who dump sewage into waterways.

The Environment Agency pointed to an almost fivefold increase in its water enforcement workforce since 2023 and said The Water (Special Measures) Act 2025 has already brought in new powers to tackle poor performance.

A spokesman added: "Thames Water is to be sentenced later this year after pleading guilty to 18 discharges of raw sewage from its sites that polluted several waterways and land in southern England between 2017 and 2023."

River Action A white man is in a red jacket wearing a backpack.River Action
James Wallace, CEO of River Action says hot weather makes pollution issues worse

Thames Water is currently about £20bn in debt, and its lenders have suggested the government take on a "golden share" of the company, as well as giving more control to local governments, as they object to the company being nationalised.

On his recent campaign trail for his seat in Makerfield, the Prime Minister said nationalisation, or "more public control" as he called it, is something he is in favour of for water companies.

River Action said it would like to see Thames Water put into special administration, because of the amount of debts they are paying off.

A government spokesperson said: "The government will always act in the national interest on these issues.

"[Thames Water] remains financially stable, but we stand ready for all eventualities, including applying for a Special Administration Regime if that were to become necessary."

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