In response to the OEP investigation into the EA, DEFRA and Ofwat, The Rivers Trust says:

"The fact that three public bodies tasked with regulating our water industry and its impact on the environment have failed to do so effectively over such a period of time validates the tireless work of environmental and community groups who have long called out water companies' over-reliance on CSOs. It is imperative that the Environment Agency, Defra, and Ofwat now respond to the OEP's findings fully and in good faith.

"We welcome the positive steps that are now being taken to reduce the blight of sewage pollution on our waterways, but there is room for much more ambition to transform how we manage water to restore our rivers to good health. We will wait to see whether water companies’ five-year investment plans – to be announced later this week – go far enough to meet the OEP’s requirements."