AS FRUSTRATION grows over failure to tackle pollution, new research revealed yesterday that over a quarter of adults in England have considered withholding water bill payments.

A new report from Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) has accused the water industry of falling short of the Environment Agency’s target to reduce pollution incidents by 40 per cent.

Instead, they recorded a 30 per cent increase to 2,487 incidents, the highest in a decade.

Polling 2,000 adults, SAS found that 27 per cent of people in England have considered not paying their bill due to the actions of their water supplier. 

Water bills surged by 47 per cent this month and are expected to keep rising, with customers projected to pay £160 more in 2030 compared with 2024.

SAS’s report raises concerns about where this money is being spent.

Despite new regulations aimed at reducing profits from pollution, shareholders received £1.2 billion in 2023–24, while record levels of raw sewage were discharged into England’s waters.

SAS CEO Giles Bristow said: “We can change things, if we change the way our system is run. Across the globe, the norm is to manage water at a local level, rather than the 100 per cent private ownership model in place in England that has proved catastrophic for the environment and public health.”

Through its app last year, SAS received 1,853 sickness reports after water exposure — an average of five per day.

SAS is calling for major reform, with customers and environmental groups involved in decisions about how water is managed, tougher enforcement by regulators and investment prioritised to tackle sewage pollution.

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “This level of pollution is unacceptable and we are taking a number of steps to hold water companies to account if they pollute our rivers and waterways.

“It is now a statutory requirement for water companies to produce annual plans showing how they will meet our expectation of reducing pollution incidents by 40%.

“We’re also undertaking the biggest transformation to the way we regulate with new enforcement powers and more regulation and enforcement officers.”