Boxing Day swimmers are less likely to be at risk of falling ill after a freezing dip this year because of action taken to clean up rivers, lakes and seas, the Government has promised.
Thousands of people are expected to have taken part in traditional Christmastime swims across England on Thursday or Friday and the Water Minister has claimed that these swims already carry less risk of encountering unpleasant or unhealthy conditions because of Government policies.
The Government claims that 93 per cent of bathing sites meet the minimum standards required for swimming, a small improvement on last year, while it is continuing to crack down on water company bosses who do not do enough to stop sewage discharges.
The moves come in the wake of The i Paper‘s campaign to Save Britain’s Rivers – although ministers have not yet accepted all of the campaign’s demands, and a white paper setting out a comprehensive plan to clean up waterways has been delayed until 2026.
The Water (Special Measures) Act, brought in this year, bans bonuses for water bosses who do not meet acceptable standards and makes them in theory criminally liable for damage to waterways, for example by discharging sewage into them.
A total of £4m in mooted bonus payments have been blocked so far across six different water companies. Meanwhile, the compensation payable to customers whose service is interrupted has been doubled.
Emma Hardy, the Water Minister, said: “Boxing Day swims are a brilliant reminder of how much people value their rivers, lakes and seas.
“This year we’ve taken tough, long-overdue action to protect them – increasing bathing water quality, blocking millions in bonuses and unlocking record investment to clean up our waterways. And we’re not stopping there. Next year we will set out long-term reforms to build upon this work and create a water sector fit for the future.”
The Government has said the existing regulator, Ofwat, will be abolished and replaced by a new body that will have wider powers to oversea the entire system – although details of how it will work and exactly what powers it will have are yet to be announced. Already real-time monitoring of sensitive sites has been mandated to allow the public to keep an eye on water health.
Your next read
square COVID INQUIRY ExclusiveMore than £1m a month being spent on 207 civil servants for Covid inquiry
square CHILDCARE ExclusiveLabour scraps extra funding to help new mothers and babies
square POLITICS ExclusiveLabour’s twin threat from Farage and Polanski puts UK in ‘uncharted territory’
square POLITICS AnalysisKing Charles praises diversity and targets culture warriors in political Christmas speech
Ministers have ruled out nationalising the water sector, which is a natural monopoly because it is not possible for consumers to switch from one provider to another in the event of poor service or rising prices.
Instead they have relied on a policy of encouraging as much private investment as possible, in the hope of improving the quality of water infrastructure and reducing sewage spills in future years.
More than £104bn of investment has been announced by the Government to come over the next five years. As well as cleaning up the water supply, new infrastructure is needed to enable an increase in housebuilding in areas at risk of water stress, for example because of a lack of reservoir capacity.
Hence then, the article about majority of uk bathing sites finally clean enough to swim in was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Majority of UK bathing sites finally clean enough to swim in )
Also on site :
- One person in critical condition following two-vehicle collision on SR-126 at Boosey Road
- Kentucky congressman announces death of longtime staffer, campaign manager
- Trump rants about Epstein in Christmas Day post claiming he dropped ties with sex offender ‘long before it became fashionable’