Water bosses who try to hide their illegal sewage spills can now be locked up for a maximum of two years as a law change comes into effect.
The new sentencing guidelines will be an option for judges from today, with the government hoping the threat of prison time will alarm executives into action.
Last year, there were 3,614,428 hours of sewage spills recorded across England – a small increase compared to 2023.
While the total number of spills fell by almost 3%, Environment Secretary Steve Reed said the figures remained ‘disgraceful’.
As the updated guidelines come into effect, Reed said: ‘Bosses must face consequences if they commit crimes. There must be accountability.
‘From today, there will be no more hiding places.
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‘As part of the Plan for Change, water companies must now focus on cleaning up our rivers, lakes and seas for good.’
Previously, the maximum penalty for water company officials who were criminally prosecuted for obstruction was a fine.
But the only three workers in the sector who were ever found guilty of the crime since privatisation ended up paying no penalty at all.
The new measure was part of the government’s Water (Special Measures) Act, which received royal assent in February.
Alongside the sentencing changes, the legislation bans the payment of bonuses to bosses who fail to meet environmental, financial or consumer protection standards.
Meanwhile, polluters will also be forced to pay for the cost of criminal investigations into their wrongdoing.
Environment Agency Chief Executive Philip Duffy described the new law as ‘a crucial step in making sure water companies take full responsibility for their impact on the environment’.
He added: ‘The tougher powers we have gained though this legislation will allow us, as the regulator, to close the justice gap, deliver swifter enforcement action and ultimately deter illegal activity.’
A report from the National Audit Office (NAO) released today has found it could cost as much as £52 billion to build all the projects needed to meet future water demand.
By 2050, the NAO predicted the UK could face a daily shortfall of five billion litres of water, with the amount of investment required to put the country back on the right track described as ‘unprecedented’.
The public spending watchdog warned it would take 700 years for water companies to replace the entire existing water network at their current pace.
Liberal Democrat environment spokesperson Tim Farron said the report demonstrated the need for ‘radical reform’ in the sector.
He said: ‘This report should act as yet another call to action for the Government to replace Ofwat with a new regulator to hold water companies accountable and ensure customers are not on the hook for failures of regulation and governance.’
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