§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether it is the case that the Department of the Environment's investment programme to clean up Britain's rivers, etc., will not remove the danger of rats as carriers of Weil's disease, and whether they will make a statement.
The Earl of CaithnessWater authorities spent about £308 million in 1987–88 on building new sewers and rehabilitating the existing system as well100WA as investing in sewage treatment works—an increase of 30 per cent. in real terms in 1981–82. The condition of our sewers is therefore being addressed. However, water authority investment, even were it much higher, is unlikely to have much direct effect on the rat population and the risk of Weil's disease. Rodent control exercises, and guidance for those potentially exposed to the bacteria, are the principal ways of reducing the risk of Weil's disease.