Fleur Anderson MP Labour MP for Putney, Roehampton & Southfields
New: “Dangerous, dirty and disgusting” – Fleur Anderson MP reacts furiously to news of sewage spills into River Wandle in Putney
Last week, the River Wandle has had shockingly levels of sewage pumped in by Thames Water. This comes after more than 40 beaches now have pollution warnings and MPs and the public are increasingly angry about pollution in our waters. Shocking figures show there were over 80 sewage leaks in 2021 into the River Wandle, where thousands of people fish, boat, swim and play.
Research by The Rivers’ Trust has found that raw sewage was discharged into Putney’s natural environment for a duration of 221 hours last year alone.
According to the Wandle Valley Forum, the sewage outfall was reported in the Poulter Park area and originated from Thames Water’s Beddington Farmlands sewage works.
Fleur Anderson MP for Putney said:
“All Putney residents who enjoy walking the banks of our beautiful River Wandle will be deeply shocked by the news that there were a major sewage release into the river last week. This is on top of 81 sewage leaks into the river last year alone.
Thousands of people kayak, boat and play on and around this river, and would have assumed our Government had basic safety and hygiene standards in place to prevent these foul leaks. Last year Thames Water was fined £2.3m for a pollution incident in 2016 that resulted in the death of 1,200 fish and damaged the environment. But they are continuing to pollute our waters.
I voted in Parliament in 2021 for legislation that would have demanded water companies stop the practice of raw sewage dumping into our environment. Almost every Conservative MP voted against this, and enabled companies to continue to put raw sewage into our rivers and seas.
Not only that, but the bare minimum has also been too much for the Government on this issue – their sewage reduction plan was only published this week, after the French Government demanded we do more to protect our waters.
Our water bills are going up and we expect Thames Water to clean up our rivers not pollute them. I have written to the Chief Executive of Thames Water to demand an urgent meeting, and will continue to demand stronger action by Government and enforcement by the Environment Agency.”
Labour Party research shows that on average water companies in England and Wales are pumping raw sewage into our natural every two-and-a-half minutes, with areas such as beaches, playing fields and bathing waters having faced 1,076 years-worth of raw sewage dumped over a six-year period.
Last year, Conservative MPs voted to allow water firms to continue sewage dumping, having blocked a Labour-backed amendment to the Environment Bill, that would have sought to progressively eliminate sewage dumping into our natural environment.
Jim McMahon, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said:
“Conservative MPs who are busy Tippexing over their voting records must explain to the country why they voted to allow the scenes of sewage dumping that we’re seeing on the news.
“Families across the country should be able to just enjoy where they live, work or holiday, without having to worrying about encountering filthy sewage as a result of water firms being allowed to cut corners.
“Britain deserves better than a zombie Tory government up to its neck in raw sewage. A Labour government will use the levers of power to hold reckless water bosses to account and toughen regulations to prevent them from gaming the system.”
Notes to editors:
- Coverage of the Wandle Sewage outflow on Friday: https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/river-wandle-thames-water-sewage-b1021013.html
- The Rivers Trust sewage map and ‘investigate’ constituency breakdowns:
https://theriverstrust.org/sewage-map
- Huge increase in raw sewage released into UK waterways and sea, data reveals: https://news.sky.com/story/huge-increase-in-raw-sewage-released-into-uk-waterways-and-sea-data-reveals-12677730
- Truss oversaw cut in funds to tackle water pollution, since when raw sewage discharge has risen: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/aug/22/liz-truss-environment-agency-cuts-sewage-water-pollution
- Concern grows as MPs vote against blocking water companies from discharging sewage into rivers: https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/mps-environment-bill-dump-sewage-b1944968.html
- Campaigners for clean water said they were disappointed that what they viewed as a less stringent amendment had been approved: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/08/move-to-avert-sewage-rebellion-in-commons-dismissed-as-too-weak
- How did my MP vote on sewage? List of MPs who voted for and against dumping raw sewage into seas and rivers: https://www.nationalworld.com/news/politics/how-did-my-mp-vote-on-sewage-list-of-mps-who-voted-for-and-against-dumping-raw-sewage-into-seas-and-rivers-3433000
- Liz Truss failed to meet any water bosses over sewage dumping in two years in environment post: https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium/uk-news/sewage-water-liz-truss-environment-b2154204.html
- After Truss’s cuts, staff were moved away from environmental monitoring: