§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what communications he has received from the European Commission over the last five years regarding the 1980 drinking water quality directive; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. BaldryThere are frequent communications between the Department and the European Commission, formal and informal, about various aspects of this and other directives. The most significant of those relating to the drinking water directive over the last five years have been as follows.
The Commission has pursued infraction proceedings against the United Kingdom alleging failure to incorporate the directive into legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland, to apply it to water for food production, and to comply in certain respects with the directive's requirements in relation to lead and nitrate. I firmly believe that, following a hearing later this month, the European Court of Justice should recognise that we have in fact taken all practicable steps to meet the requirements of the directive.
The Environment Commissioner wrote to the then Minister for Housing, Environment and Countryside in May 1989 expressing himself satisfied that provisions in what is now the Water Act 1989, and statements made in another place during the debates on it, showed that the United Kingdom intended
to rectify any deficiencies in water supplies as quickly as possible taking certain practicalities into account".We have since sent the Commission detailed information about the compliance programme which is now in place in all parts of the United Kingdom. As we have told the Commission, we believe this clearly 250W demonstrates that we are implementing the drinking water directive successfully and effectively. Indeed, we do not know of any other member state which has a comparable compliance programme firmly committed and fully funded. We have also sent the Commission the first report of the drinking water inspectorate covering 1990, which is also unique in the Community as a published and comprehensive record of drinking water quality. The chief drinking water inspector will be making a presentation about the report to staff of the Commission in Brussels next month.