§ Mr. Richard Wainwrightasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish in the Official Report a table to show the number of disconnections of water supply carried out by each regional water authority in each year from 1974 to 1981; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Giles ShawWater authorities and water companies are empowered by section 38 of the Water Act 1945 to cut off supplies for non-payment and to take proceedings for recovery. All water undertakers work to a draft code of practice issued by the National Water Council in 1978. The code is designed to prevent disconnection of water supply to domestic properties in cases of real financial or personal hardship. A copy of the draft code was placed in the Library during January 1982.
No central records are maintained in the Department and the National Water Council has information only relating to the financial years 1979–80 and 1980–81 which are as follows:
Water Authority Number of disconnections (unmeasured consumers) 1979–80 1980–81 Northumbrian 139 80 North West 1,500 393 Severn-Trent 1,500 730 Yorkshire 1 2 Anglian 313 950 Thames 3,400 4,109 Southern Nil Nil Wessex Nil Nil South West 20 12 Welsh 10 18 Total 6,883 6,294 These totals constitute respectively 0.05 per cent. and 0.04 per cent. of all consumers with an unmeasured water supply. Comparable figures for the water companies are not available.
When the water authority figures for 1981–82 become available, I will write to the hon. Member.