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Press Release

  23 November 2006

THAMES WATER PLEADS GUILTY TO CHARGE OF SUPPLYING WATER UNFIT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

Thames Water Utilities Ltd pleaded guilty on Thursday 23 November 2006 to supplying water unfit for human consumption at Reading Magistrate’s Court. The incident involved the supply of discoloured water to consumers in the Spencers Wood and Shinfield area of Reading in May 2004. The charges were brought under Section 70 of the Water Industry Act 1991 . In response to the verdict, Professor Jeni Colbourne, Chief Inspector of Drinking Water, said:

“ The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) will investigate and consider prosecution in all cases where consumers receive water which they regard as unfit for consumption. I am satisfied with the outcome of the hearing. This demonstrates our firm commitment to consumers and to the safety and acceptability of tap water.”

The Company was fined £12,000 on each of two specimen counts and ordered to pay £7,830.50 toward prosecution costs.
The Inspectorate will make the results of its investigation publicly available in due course.


Notes for Editors

  1. Section 70 of the Water Industry Act 1991 makes it criminal offence for a water company to supply water which is unfit for human consumption. DWI investigates all drinking water quality incidents and since the Water Act 2003 can take forward prosecutions in the name of the Chief Inspector of Drinking Water. Prosecutions are taken forward where there is reliable evidence that water unfit for human consumption was supplied, where the company does not have a defence that it took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence, and when such a prosecution is regarded as being in the public interest.

  2. The prosecution follows an investigation by DWI of an incident involving the supply of discoloured water to consumers in the Spencers Wood and Shinfield areas of Reading in May 2004. Thames Water Utilities Limited carried out planned work at their Mortimer water treatment works as part of a trial designed to test an increase in the volume of water pumped from the boreholes. The change in velocity and/or direction of the flow resulted in the supply of water which was discoloured. This is not the first occasion that consumers in this area have experienced discoloured water. A number of consumers found the appearance of the water so unpleasant that they rejected it for drinking and food preparation purposes.

  3. The Drinking Water Inspectorate was set up in January 1990. Its main task is to check that water companies in England and Wales supply wholesome drinking water and in doing so comply with the requirements of the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2000 (England) and Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2001 (Wales).





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