MP puts water boss on 'resignation watch'

Newquay's MP has issued a "final warning" to the boss of South West Water if the company does not agree on the "need for urgency" in addressing incidents of water pollution.

Noah Law has expressed disappointment that Chief Executive Susan Davy did not attend a recent meeting to discuss the issue at the company's headquarters. He says he will call on her to resign “if the company does not agree on the need for urgency" to accelerate its plans to spend £700 million on improving infrastructure between 2030 and 2050.

He claims the company has not yet made clear commitments to bring its infrastructure investments forward, or even to begin them during the early part of the first phase of the development programme.

He said: “Sewage pollution is an absolute priority issue for my constituents who, like me, are very upset by scenes of disgusting pollution across beaches in St Austell and Newquay.”

The recent environmental incident at Pentewan, which saw thousands of fish die in the White River, is potentially a “final straw”, Mr Law claimed. The incident is currently subject to an ongoing investigation by the Environment Agency.

He has also criticised the Chief Executive directly: “I’ve always believed that cooperation is the best way to get things done, and I entered talks with South West Water very much in that spirit, but I am slightly disappointed that the Chief Executive Susan Davy didn't even choose to attend the meeting to discuss this issue of importance and major urgency to my constituents,” he said, adding that he will call on her to resign if the company does not recognise the urgency of the situation.

South West Water has offered for Mr Law to meet with its Managing Director of Waste Water to "help him to understand the work we are doing in his constituency."

A spokesperson said: "Regarding investment in infrastructure, as you know, we run critical national infrastructure and have embarked on our largest ever investment programme across our Group, £3.2bn, which spans from Cornwall to Surrey. Eleven of these major projects are in Mr Law’s constituency.

"We are prioritising our investment on what customers have told us are most important to them, and to help us deliver on what we promised: to reduce the use of storm overflows, ensure water resilience and supply, invest in vital infrastructure, support customers more than ever, and take a green-first approach to our solutions as much as possible."

The firm says the projects in the St Austell and Newquay constituency are part of a wider 15-year delivery programme to reduce the use of storm overflows, which will involve a complete redesign of the infrastructure network. If laid out in full, it says the system would span the circumference of the world highlighting that "work of this scale takes time."

Regarding the timescale, the company says the specific projects in the area will be delivered within the first five years of the 15-year programme, well ahead of the Government’s deadline, and include: Towan Head SPS and Fistral North and South.

It says the projects fall under the "AMP8" investment period, set to be delivered by March 2030 with some expected to be subject to planning permission and are currently being modelled ahead of design and delivery, which contributes to the timeline.

The spokesperson added: "About the management of our business, it’s important to say that we live and work in this region and care deeply about what we all do every single day – we are also customers of South West Water. Our 4,000 brilliant colleagues work hard day and night to keep taps running and toilets flushing. We will not stop, and we will continue to deliver on our promises."