Exclusive:Future of Ofwat to be assessed by new Water Commissioon as minister says there is 'a lack of clarity' over regulators

The commission will look at how regulation of the water industry can be strengthened, as well as driving investment into the sector to upgrade its creaking infrastructure.

It comes after the announcement of the Water Special Measures Bill, which will introduce criminal liability onto water bosses as well as powers to ban bonuses.

Speaking exclusively to the Yorkshire Post, Water Minister Emma Hardy explained that the findings of the commission would be used to inform more legislation next year.

“It will come as no surprise to anyone in Yorkshire that we’ve inherited a situation where we’ve got every single river, lake and sea being polluted at the moment,” she said.

“The system is failing because if it was working we wouldn’t be facing the levels of pollution that we have at the moment, and we wouldn’t be facing crumbling infrastructure and issues with leaks.”

Ms Hardy, who is also the Hull West and Haltemprice MP, explained that the commission “is taking that big picture look at the entire water sector and saying what needs to be done across the piece”.

“This isn’t a review that’s going to sit on a shelf and be forgotten about afterwards, this is going to be used to inform another piece of primary legislation.”

She explained this would include looking at the role of the three regulators which cover the water sector - the Environment Agency, Ofwat and the Drinking Water Inspectorate.

In particular, Ofwat, which regulates bills, has come under criticism during the sewage crisis, with the Liberal Democrats calling it “not fit for purpose”.

The Yorkshire Post understands it will be within the scope of the commission to advise on scrapping Ofwat completely or potentially merging it with one of the other regulators.

Ms Hardy explained: “There’s a lack of clarity within the system over which is the best regulator and how things should be regulated. 

“What we want to come out of this is stronger regulation, clearer regulation so that everyone understands the rules and everyone understands what’s expected.”

She said she expects the Commission to be looking “really clearly at all of the regulators, how do they work together, how are they communicating their expectations and how are they following up on consequences when rules are broken”.

Earlier in the year, Ofwat announced a £47 million fine for Yorkshire Water for a “catalogue of failures”.

It was also revealed that chief executive Nicola Shaw received a £371,000 annual bonus for 2023-24 financial year.

It comes as singer turned campaigner Feargal Sharkey was testing the River Don near Swinton, and found high levels of nitrate and phosphate toxins near a sewage works.

Yesterday, Ofwat revealed that Yorkshire Water is looking to increase bills by 35 per cent by 2029-30 to improve the company’s old infrastructure.

The regulator is set to make its final decision by the end of the year.

A Water UK spokesperson said: “We understand that bill rises are never welcome, but we urgently need investment in our water and sewage infrastructure. 

“Funds raised by increasing bills are ringfenced by the regulator, so they can only be used to pay for improvements that are new, needed and value for money.”

Ofwat has been contacted for comment.