§ Mr. LuffTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will investigate the level of charges by Severn Trent Water for water at educational establishments; and if he will make a statement. [86870]
§ Mr. Meacher[holding answer 14 June 1999]: This is a matter for Severn Trent Water. The Director General of Water Services has the general function of overseeing companies' use of their charging powers to ensure that there is no undue discrimination between different classes 528W of customer but he has no role in approving their detailed charges. The Water Industry Act 1999 will give the Secretary of State and the Director General new powers to approve charges schemes which should tackle this problem.