Speeches by Dollimore.

“Lots of numbers there, but in summary the system used dates from ’94, it is being updated, and work is beginning on that.”

“Around mid-2023?”

“It was six months of meetings between you and Ashford?”

“Does that figure come from the Environment Agency?”

“Severn Trent got a four-star rating in your 2024 Environmental Performance Review despite having over 60,000 sewage spills. Why do you not account for those in your performance reporting?”

“Just lastly on this question about the water industry more broadly, I picked up in your earlier answers that you are quite defensive of the water industry and the sewage scandal in general about bills not having gone up enough. Do you see that as the main failing in the sewage scandal, or money taken out for bonuses an…”

“Many constituents would be quite shocked to hear that the first point at which you enter the sewage scandal is that bills have not been high enough because a lot of people feel—”

“It is obviously a complex issue and is something that the Committee has looked into extensively and produced reports on. We have found conclusively that a lot of money has been taken out, and that investments committed to as part of price review cycles were then reneged on and not done even though the bills were put up…”

“On designated bathing sites—particularly beaches—where an issue is flagged up, something that has been suggested by groups is that there is a uniform approach across the country to putting some signage up to say to people, “It’s dangerous to go in the sea today,” or, “It’s fine to go in the sea today.” Is that somethin…”

“On sewer overflows specifically, it took the Environment Agency until 2023 to fully monitor all overflows. Why was that?”

“What about tourists who might not be familiar with which app to use?”

“How much does a monitor cost?”

“We would expect the chief executive of the Environment Agency in such a high-profile case—it has had huge media attention and has obviously been called out in the House of Lords report—to be across when inspectors were sent on site in this case to see what went wrong so we can stop it happening in other cases.”

“Which is the year I was born.”

“You said earlier that bringing the regulator powers of Ofwat and the Environment Agency together under one more powerful regulator will certainly give you more teeth.”

“We are moving on to water pollution. I know we have covered some issues, but if we could please keep answers brief because we are tight on time for this session. The public are very angry about the situation with water pollution and the water companies. In previous evidence sessions, other witnesses have described the …”

“Just on that point, you say the public have not paid enough for water in their water bills. Would you not also feel it is the case that a huge amount of money has been siphoned off out of the water industry by shareholders paying dividends instead of investing in fixing these issues?”

“Let us be clear: the Bill is the biggest uplift to renters’ rights in a generation. It will make a huge difference for so many people in my constituency. Before I come to the amendments, I place on the record my thanks to the Minister stewarding the Bill through Parliament, and to my right hon. Friend the Member for As…”

“Jules Fielder is a young woman from Hastings who has tragically been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer after doctors repeatedly missed the early symptoms. Jules is now channelling her personal tragedy into action and campaigning to raise awareness of early symptoms, and she wants shops like Boots and Superdrug to use…”

“May I add my congratulations to the new Archbishop of Canterbury? I wrote my thesis on the campaign for women’s ordination in the Church of England, so it is brilliant to see a woman go to the highest office for the first time, and I place on the record my thanks to the women and men who campaigned for women’s ordinati…”