§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment why United Kingdom safe water standards fell from 100 per cent. in urban areas to 99.6 per cent., between 1980 and 1990 according to statistics published by the World Health Organisation publication "Progress Towards Health for All." [35151]
Mr. ClappinsonThe difference between the figures for 1980 and 1990 is due to the fact that the World Health Organisation revised, and made stricter, its guidelines for drinking water quality. The change does not imply that water was unsafe to drink.
Since 1990, the Drinking Water Inspectorate has checked the quality of drinking water in England and Wales against the standards set in the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 1989. These standards are stricter than those recommended by the World Health Organisation in its 1984 guidelines for drinking water quality, which were current in 1989. The Drinking Water Inspectorate's latest annual report shows that in the calendar year 1994, the water companies in England and Wales carried out approximately 3.5 million tests, of which 99.3 per cent. met the relevant standard in the regulations. None of those which did not meet the standards constituted unsafe water.