The country’s nine water firms are leaking almost 2.4 billion litres of water daily while paying chief executives big bonuses.
The scale of the leakages comes amid fears the UK faces an extended drought after a very dry summer with calls for hosepipe bans to more homes growing louder.
In the past two years the bosses of England’s water companies were paid a total of £24.3million, say the Times.
Thames Water, England’s largest water company, to be the biggest culprit, leaking 605 million litres of water a day, based on a three-year average.
The firm, which serves areas including Greater London, the Thames Valley, Surrey and Gloucestershire, said it is leaking 24% of its supply. Boss Sarah Bentley was paid £3.2m in the past two years.
Severn Trent Water, which serves the Midlands, leaked 446 million litres a day. Liv Garfield, its chief executive, has got almost £7m since 2020.
The third highest amount lost was United Utilities, which serves north-west England, with 413 million litres a day. Boss Steve Mogford received almost £3.2m in the past year.
Jim McMahon, Shadow Environment Secretary, said: “The Tories have presided over a crisis in our neglected water system which struggles to keep up with demand.
“The now-ageing system is at bursting point.
“We cannot carry on as we are, with 1,245 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water lost through leaks.”
Ofwat said: “We have pushed companies to cut leakage and set a target of 16% reduction.”
A Thames Water statement said: “Last year, we reduced the amount of water lost by 10%.”
United Utilities said: “We met our target for the 16th year running.” Severn Trent said: “We’re committed to reducing leakage by 15% by 2025.”
