Singer-turned-environmental campaigner Feargal Sharkey today expressed his doubts about plans to reform water services, saying he could not see company executives ever being jailed for sewage dumping under proposed new laws.
The activist and former Undertones frontman, who campaigned for Labour in the run-up to the general election, said the new Government should force regulators to “go out and apply the law” rather than creating new legislation.
It comes as the Water (Special Measures) Bill, which will give regulators powers to issue severe and automatic fines — as well as two-year custodial sentences — to water companies bosses found to be damaging the environment, was set out.
But Sharkey said “for 20 years” existing laws had allowed for company directors to receive “unlimited fines” for “that kind of environment vandalism”.
“I cannot find a single example of any company director ever prosecuted, ever being fined a penny,” he told Sky News, adding that potential jail terms announced in the new Bill would be for executives who fail to co-operate or who obstruct investigations.
“I guarantee you right now it will never, ever happen. What we needed was decisive, clear leadership and, sadly, I can’t see that today,” he said.
However Environment Secretary Steve Reed vowed that water company bosses will be “held accountable” for their role in polluting Britain’s waterways.
“I consider [Mr Sharkey] a friend,” Mr Reed said. “And you know, he's a is a campaigner. He's desperate to see change. What I announced today will deliver the change that he wants to see.”
CEOs currently face fines for failing to comply with investigations by the Environment Agency and the Drinking Water Inspectorate, but there have been just three such penalties since the privatisation of the water industry three decades ago.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) plans to tighten compliance rules to force firms to hand over sewage data more quickly, and said the failure for doing so could result in up to two years in jail.
In a speech to investors, environmental groups and campaigners at the Thames Rowing Club on Thursday morning, Mr Reed said: “Instead of protecting our waterways, water companies were allowed to pay out multi-million-pound bonuses and billions in dividends - and the Conservatives were too weak to stop them.
The result? This year’s annual boat race here in Putney was overshadowed by health warnings telling rowers not to enter the water due to high levels of sewage.”
He added: “Firmer action should have been taken over the last fourteen years to ensure money was spent on fixing the water and sewage system, not syphoned off for bonuses and dividend payments… But while I can’t undo the failure of the past – I can stop it happening again.
We’ve inherited a broken water system that affects us all – from the health and happiness of communities to the quality and resilience of our food system and natural environment.
These are systemic issues that require a proper reset with a reformed water sector
in a new partnership with government to bring in the investment we need.”
Mr Reed was also expected to address calls for the industry to be renationalised by saying it “would cost billions of pounds and take years to unpick the current ownership model leaving sewage pollution to get worse and halt much needed investment.”
An investigation by regulator Ofwat earlier this year found that three water companies, including Thames Water failed to adequately invest in and maintain their networks, leading to repeated releases of raw sewage into rivers and streams.
It proposed a record fine for Thames Water of £104million, as well as £47million for Yorkshire Water and £17million for Northumbrian Water.
