§ Ms PrimaroloTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the occasions in the last five years when a water authority or company has supplied water which has been found to be unhealthy, stating the water authority or company involved in each case.
§ Mr. AtkinsIn 1992 water companies in England and Wales carried out approximately 3.75 million tests of the various parameters by which compliance with the standards for drinking water are assessed. Of these tests, 98.7 per cent. demonstrated compliance with the relevant water quality standard. There is no evidence that any of the contraventions was of such a magnitude or duration as to endanger the health of consumers.
Since the drinking water inspectorate was established on 2 January 1990, it has been informed by water companies of 295 incidents which affected, or threatened to affect, drinking water quality. To date no water companies have been prosecuted for supplying water unfit for human consumption.