§ 3. Mr. SandersIf he will introduce measures to allow independent public monitoring organisations to gain automatic entry to water treatment works. [30623]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (Angela Eagle)I see no reason to provide for additional organisations to monitor water treatment works. Standards of water treatment are extremely high. Water companies must, by law, check that drinking water meets 55 separate standards. It is the job of the drinking water inspectorate to check that companies carry out their quality checks properly.
§ Mr. SandersI thank the Minister for that reply, but it does not answer the question. Private companies are able to stop public bodies, such as the drinking water inspectorate and the Environment Agency, from gaining access to water works. There were problems with the cryptosporidium bug in my constituency in 1995 and more recently in London. Will the Minister look closely at the rights and duties of the public bodies that exist to protect the public's drinking water so as to enable them to inspect water works without prior appointment?
§ Angela EagleWe are looking carefully at the fallout from the outbreak of cryptosporidium and the health problems caused in Torbay in 1995, particularly in the light of the subsequent attempt to prosecute the water authority, which failed because the court did not allow as evidence the report of the outbreak control team. We hope to be able to make a statement about that shortly.