Overview

• The Water (Special Measures) Act's enforcement provisions take effect, enabling up to two-year prison sentences for executives obstructing sewage spill investigations.
• Regulators can now ban executive bonuses for environmental failures and require real-time monitoring of sewage overflow outlets.
• Water companies discharged nearly 4 million hours of untreated sewage in 2024, with hundreds of illegal spills identified since 2020.
• Only three individuals have ever been prosecuted for obstructing investigations into sewage spills, none receiving fines or prison time.
• Campaigners and Water UK advocate for independent third-party monitoring to replace self-reporting and enhance transparency in pollution data.