Yorkshire Water to hike bills by almost a third from April
Yorkshire Water is set to hike bills by almost a third from April, final figures have confirmed.
The rise, confirmed by industry body Water UK, will take the average water and wastewater bill in the county from £467 to £602 - a 29 per cent increase.
This is higher than the average increase across England and Wales, which is £123 or 26 per cent.
The increases are higher than those announced by Ofwat in its new five-year price limits for firms just before Christmas as they include inflation.
Yorkshire Water said this will pay for an £8.3 billion upgrade to water infrastructure across the region.
Sewage spills have contributed to a situation in which no single river in Yorkshire is considered to be in good overall health, with activists finding 10 times the normal levels of E.coli at Knaresborough Lido.
While Scarborough and Whitby MP Alison Hume recently raised concerns that pollution could lead to the extinction of the freshwater pearl mussel in the region.
Commenting on the bill hike, a Yorkshire Water spokesperson said:“Our £8.3bn investment over the next five years is vital to deliver the service our customers expect and improved environmental performance.
“Of course, we’re aware some in our region are struggling financially, so as part of our plans for the next five years we’re increasing the support available to those households.
“We would encourage anyone who is struggling financially to contact our teams to discuss the options available to them.
“Over the next five years, 535,000 households will be helped by all types of financial support offered by Yorkshire Water, which will amount to £375m of bill help and debt support for customers, up from £115m between 2020 and 2025.”
"We’ll also improve the resilience of our network of pipes and focus on preparing for the challenges of climate change and population growth.”
Water UK chief executive David Henderson said: “We understand increasing bills is never welcome and, while we urgently need investment in our water and sewage infrastructure, we know that for many this increase will be difficult.
“Water companies will invest a record £20 billion in 2025-26 to support economic growth, build more homes, secure our water supplies and end sewage entering our rivers and seas.”