Sewage UK: Water company bosses awarded over £25m despite illegal discharging of 'toxic' waste into UK rivers and seas

Water company bosses have awarded themselves over £25 million in bonuses and incentives since the last election despite continuously discharging “toxic” sewage into UK rivers and seas, new analysis from Labour has found. The analysis found that nine water chief executives were paid a staggering £10 million pounds in bonuses, £14 million in incentives and £603,580 in benefits since 2019. 

At the same time, water companies plan to hike customers’ bills by an extra £156 a year to plug a financial gap and upgrade Britain's Victorian infrastructure. Steve Reed MP, Labour’s Shadow Environment Secretary, slammed the Conservatives for “turning a blind eye” to “corruption at the heart of the water industry”, adding that “with Labour, the polluter - not the public - will pay.”

Labour said it will give the water regulator new powers to ban the payment of bonuses to water bosses who are illegally polluting our rivers, lakes and seas with sewage. The party said that by expanding Ofwat’s regulatory powers, water companies who fail to meet environmental standards on sewage pollution will face tough sanctions to ensure they cannot profit from law-breaking. The party claims that under their plans Ofwat could have blocked six out of nine water bosses' bonuses last year because of severe levels of illegal pollution.

The revelations come after a damning BBC Panorama investigation found evidence of a water company covering up illegal sewage discharges, making sewage pollution disappear from the official figures. Whistle-blowers at the Environment Agency told Panorama a water company was wrongly downgrading pollution dumping, and that the agency was failing to conduct independent checks.

Mr Reed has outlined plans to put the water industry under special measures and strengthen regulation. These plans include: 

• end self-monitoring and force all companies to monitor every single water outlet so companies can no longer cover up illegal sewage dumping; 

• make water bosses face personal criminal liability for extreme and persistent lawbreaking;

• introduce severe and automatic fines that no water bosses can ignore for illegal sewage discharges.

Mr Reed said: “This Conservative Government has wilfully turned a blind eye to corruption at the heart of the water industry. The result is stinking, toxic sewage destroying our countryside, and consumers facing higher bills while failing water bosses pocket millions in bonuses.”

He added: “Labour will put failing water companies under special measures. We will strengthen regulation so law-breaking water bosses face criminal charges, and give the regulator new powers to block the payment of any bonuses until water bosses have cleaned up their filth. With Labour, the polluter - not the public - will pay.”