§ 11. Jane Griffiths (Reading, East)If he will make a statement on the outcome of the water quality consultation on regulations for drinking water. [128410]
§ The Minister for the Environment (Mr. Michael Meacher)The consultation period for proposed new regulations on drinking water quality closed on Friday 30 June, and almost 350 responses were received by that date.
695 The 10th annual report of the drinking water inspectorate, which will be published tomorrow, shows a welcome further improvement in water quality, and reports that water companies are well placed to meet the quality improvements required by the new regulations.
§ Jane GriffithsI thank my right hon. Friend for that reply.
No one likes furry kettles, so will my right hon. Friend reassure my constituent, Mrs. Sandy Campbell and her company, SC Softeners? Given that the regulations under consultation appear to propose a more stringent regime than the EU regulations on which they were based, will he give my constituent some assurance that she can continue to contribute to water softening and improved water quality under the new regime?
§ Mr. MeacherI certainly can give that assurance. My hon. Friend is right: under the new EC directive, we had the option to reduce controls on sodium or artificially softened water. On the advice of the Department of Health, we opted not to do so. The reason for that is the concern that when sodium is used in conjunction with infant formula, it should be safe for babies to drink without putting them at risk of the condition, infant hypernatraemia.
A problem has arisen because of an orchestrated campaign of misinformation: people, who may include my hon. Friend's constituent, have been told that they will have to blend their softened water with hard water in order to achieve the desired result. That is not true. The regulations will have no impact on them whatever.
Officials from the Department of Health are meeting representatives of British Water—because they have the greatest concerns about the matter—further to discuss the regulations.
§ Sir Sydney Chapman (Chipping Barnet)Will the Minister consider carefully the provisions under any new draft directives emanating from Brussels on the quality of drinking water? Is he aware of estimates showing that 50 per cent. of previous EU directives have not dealt with aspects of health and safety, but were entirely to do with the colour and taste of water? It can thus fairly be said that this country has spent hundreds of millions—if not billions—of pounds on meeting unnecessary standards.
§ Mr. MeacherOf course the hon. Gentleman is quite right to say that the health and safety of drinking water is absolutely at a premium, but I believe that he understates how important it is that all householders should receive water that is not unpleasant to taste or discoloured. Some 300 or 400 incidents a year are reported. I believe that, as we shall learn tomorrow, the number is gradually decreasing, but it is a matter of serious concern. It is true that, partly as a result of the investments that began under the previous Government but which we have extended substantially, the quality of drinking water in this country is second to none—as good as it is anywhere in the continent, and I would say considerably better than that of bottled water.