Eastbourne MP meets with Southern Water CEO amid environmental concerns

Concerns had been raised by Eastbourne Borough Council leader David Tutt after the town was found to have had the sixth-worst decline in bathing water quality in the UK, according to a recent study.

Mr Tutt, who is set to step down from the council, added: “The responsibility for any decline in beach water quality is the responsibility of Southern Water. The company’s frequent discharges of sewage along our precious coastline are a disgrace and must stop.”

MP Caroline Ansell said: “I share the passion so many local people have for our sea, and today [Wednesday, March 22], along with my MP colleagues from across Sussex, I questioned the CEO and senior management team at Southern Water to learn what steps they are taking to meet the new environmental regulations the government have brought in over the last few years.

“Southern Water clearly has great ambition to deliver a real improvement on their past under-performance and I was very pleased to hear how serious they are about achieving a top environmental rating by 2025.”

Mrs Ansell said there is ‘some really innovative work’ taking place, with a current project on the Isle of Wight cutting storm overflows by 90 per cent and major investment going into the service’s entire Sussex network over the next few years.

The MP will be joined by the company’s director for the environment, Toby Willison, on a Facebook live stream on Saturday, April 1, to answer questions.

Southern Water was contacted for a comment but has not replied.

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