Since Owl received this letter from a correspondent, there are BBC reports that Reform may have reversed ferret on this

Does Reform UK want to hide Devon County’s flag?

Dear Owl,

I am an advocate of the Union Jack and St Georges flags being flown at council offices. Both sides of my family can be traced to living in England for at least two centuries. 

However, I was most concerned to read that the Chair of Reform UK, Zia Yusuf only wants the Union Jack and St George’s flags to be flown on its council’s flag-poles, balconies, reception desks or council-chamber walls.

Reform controlled English councils will move at speed to resolve that the *only* flags permitted to be flown on or in its buildings will be the Union Jack and the St George’s flag.

No other flags will be permitted to be flown on its flag-poles, balconies, reception desks or… pic.twitter.com/UngyJFgCh9

— Zia Yusuf (@ZiaYusufUK) May 5, 2025

“Reform controlled English councils will move at speed to resolve that the *only* flags permitted to be flown on or in its buildings will be the Union Jack and the St George’s flag. No other flags will be permitted to be flown on its flag-poles, balconies, reception desks or council-chamber walls.  “

Does the Chair of Reform UK, Zia Yusuf not understand about the uniqueness of counties? 

The Devon flag may be very recent as a result of a competition but it represents a symbol of pride for those who were born or live in the county.

It might be worth Reform UK councillors and supporters based in Devon reading up about their county and their flag and explaining it to Mr Yusuf. 

This article explains the symbolism within the Devon flag.

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/reason-devons-flag-green-cornwalls-2251207

The former MP for a East Devon, Mr Simon Jupp was a very proud Devonian, and in his maiden speech he stated his family had “lived in the county for generations.” Many constituents and visitors to Exmouth would have seen the Devon flag on the wall in his constituency office which was situated in Mamhead View, along the seafront. 

Here’s a picture of Mr Jupp in his office. And the wall to his left had a very large Devon flag fixed to it.

Are Reform UK out-of-touch or unknowledgeable authoritarians, who want to deprive constituents in Devon of a sense of pride in our county? 

No councils in Devon should ever become Reform led, otherwise we are in danger of losing our unique heritage. 

Yours 

Concerned for Devon’s cultural heritage

Owl thinks that the county democratic services have done well to provide easily assimilated visual guides to the local election outcomes.

The first series in this post show, at a glance, the political colours of each seat won in each division.

Below these is the same information mapped geographically.

Below that are histograms showing the distribution of seats and number of votes cast for the main parties.

Some “off the cuff” observations (to provoke thought)

Exeter’s Labour wipe-out

Perhaps the most surprising result is the way that Exeter voters have turned against Labour.

In 2021 Labour had 7 seats based in and around the City, now they have none, with voters swinging all over the place.

Devon devolution

Although not a major issue in the election, the different councils’ declared approaches to local authority reorganisation are now likely to come under the spotlight.. 

Leader of the labour controlled Exeter City Council, Philip Bialyk has pursued the “go it alone” notion of Exeter and its commuter belt becoming a unitary authority. This has always begged the question as to who picks up the tab for the rural communities. A notion that maybe doesn’t command much voter support.

Likewise, the outgoing Conservative County Council initially claimed it was on the fast-track with its takeover proposal to swallow the districts, until this was rejected for not meeting government guidelines. Then it swung the other way with a smorgasbord of alternatives.

Neither of these ideas meet the current government guidelines.

The districts have other ideas and proposed the 1-4-5 three way split (the 1 is in deference to Exeter) before the election. The districts’ views are now likely to carry greater in the new County Council.

Will the government now double down on its devolution plans described recently as:  The worst local government white paper in living memory? Or reconsider in the light of the overall local election results?

Owl doesn’t expect devolution to happen any time soon.

Distribution of Reform wins.

The Reform wins look to cluster in: Exeter, suggesting a protest vote against the government; and then in Teignbridge, Torrige and West Devon. Here Owl wonders to what extent this might reflect a cry to be heard from voters in a part of “forgotten rural Britain”, forgotten by the Conservatives and simply “not on the radar” of metropolitan Labour.

The case for a proportional voting system

With the general recognition that a “five party” system is now emerging, the case for a proportional voting system is being raised once again. In particular by Reform who did particularly badly in the general election.

The table below shows how each party fared in respect of the proportion of seats they gained compared to their share of the vote (numbers rounded).

In this instance Reform and the Greens both got about the appropriate number of seats. The Lib Dems were the big winners and the Conservatives and Labour were the losers.

Party	% Share of seats	% Share of votes
Conservative Party	12	22
Liberal Democrats	45	28
Labour Party	0	8
Green Party	10	10
Reform UK	30	27
Independent	3	5

The political colour of each Division

The colours mapped

Histograms of numbers of seats and share of the votes (see here for tabulation)

Why two? 

Do you really need to ask?

Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, spent Friday morning in Shropshire handing out ice creams to members of the public, cracking jokes about “support for the Tories melting away”. The Lib Dems won the council there for the first time, taking one ward by a single vote and a second tied vote on the drawing of straws. Davey then ate two scones, one with cream on top and one with jam on top, to celebrate gains in both Devon and Cornwall, where fierce debate rages over the best way to make a cream tea. The Lib Dems won more councils and councillors than the Conservatives and now run more town halls nationwide. (Extract from Tim Shipman www.thetimes.com)

(He’s got one the “right way up” but looks to be spooning jam on first for the second)

With “No overall control” in both councils what is the big picture?

Devon – 60 seats

Lib Dems have 27 seats. Then there are the 2 East Devon Independents Paul Hayward and Jess Bailey, used to working in a Lib Dem led coalition, and 6 greens in play. So Owl expects a Lib Dem led administration with either formal MOUs or “supply and maintenance” agreements to emerge.

Reform 18 and Conservatives 7 together can only muster 25 right wing votes. 

Cornwall – 87 seats

Cornwall is much more complicated. 

Reform is the largest party with 28 seats but was reported on BBC news last night as complaining that none of the other parties will talk to them. 

The Lib Dems have 26 seats, nearly as many.

There are 16 Independents, 7 Conservatives, 4 Labour, 3 Greens, and 3 Mebyon Kernow. 

At least 44 councillors have to work together to run Cornwall which means both Reform and Lib Dems are in with a chance.

Jeff Trail in Exmouth is the only Tory left, hanging on a paper thin majority of 21 votes.

Lib Dems 5

Reform 2

Independents 2 (Paul Hayward and Jess Bailey)

Green 1

Helen Brown for reform topped the poll and her running mate Si Femor got within 21 votes of toppling Jeff Trail. This leaves Trail the ONLY conservative councillor in East Devon with the narrowest of margins!

With the last two seat Exmouth Division just declared the BBC tally puts the Lib Dems on 27 with the 2 East Devon Independents Paul Hayward and Jess Bailey and 6 greens in play to form a LibDem led coalition/alliance. There are 60 council members.

Reform 18 and Conservatives 7 together can only muster 25. Labour have lost all their 7 seats.

One of the two seat Divisions: Henry Gent holds Broadclyst for Greens and Nat Vanstone Reform comes second. This was the Tory seat previously held by Sarah Randall Johnson.

Tight race between Eleanor Rylance Lib Dem and Fernando Morales Gundin Reform for third place.

Jes Bailey, Independent, holds her seat in Otter Valley with 63% of the vote. “Local Conservative” scrapes 486 votes

Nick Hookway for the Lib Dems takes Exmouth and Budleigh Salterton Coastal – Reform splits right wing vote

Denise Bickley for Lib Dems defeats big beast and former ” monster raving loony” Stuart Hughes!

Paul Arnott wins with 40.6% of the vote on a healthy (for local election) 40% turnout – Reform second

So Paul Hayward wins Axminster and Richard Jefferies kicks out Phil Twiss!

First results for East Devon – https://www.devon.gov.uk/democracy/division2025/feniton-honiton/

This shocker presses all the buttons and is featured across national and local news.

“These individuals believed corrupt practice was widespread in the construction industry and the method by which business was done”

“When we looked at the evidence, it was quite obvious,” said DI Parkinson. “I think they thought they were never going to get caught.”

How a quiet Devon town ended up at the centre of a multi-million pound criminal conspiracy

Sam Blackledge www.itv.com 

The peaceful, pristine suburban town of Cranbrook in East Devon – with its tree-lined streets and new-build houses – is the last place you would expect to be at the centre of a major criminal conspiracy.

Fifteen years ago, as Cranbrook was being developed and prepared for residents, it needed a district heating system.

Two men – who worked for energy firm E.ON – were in charge of the project, and began handing out lucrative contracts to construction firms. As it turned out, they were accepting millions of pounds in bribes.

Drugs, gambling and climbing the property ladder

Detective Inspector Dan Parkinson, from Devon and Cornwall Police’s serious organised crime branch, told ITV News West Country the investigation – codenamed Operation Truman – was complex and took years to fully unravel.

The pair at the centre of the case, Mark Baker and Matthew Heyward, along with Mr Baker’s wife, Angela, spent four years taking huge bribes through various channels.

They accepted cash and money paid into bank accounts; home improvements were paid for; they had the use of prestige cars, holidays and luxury hotel rooms.

The payments – which came from Priddy Engineering Limited and RK Civil Engineering – were covered up with false references and fake wage slips.

Heyward spent his bribery money on gambling and drugs; the Bakers spent theirs on climbing the property ladder.

The conspiracy came crashing down when E.ON realised what was happening and alerted the police.

On Thursday, at Winchester Crown Court, the six were sentenced for offences including fraud, bribery and money laundering.

‘They thought they were never going to get caught’

“When we looked at the evidence, it was quite obvious,” said DI Parkinson. “I think they thought they were never going to get caught.

“It can be incredibly tempting as a business to pay a bribe to get a contract. But if you do it, you are committing an offence and perpetuating this situation.

“The contracts were extremely large, and the amount in bribery totalled about £2 million. That’s the scale we’re looking at.

“At the heart of it, this is about employees of E.ON – who should have been acting in the best interests of the company – taking bribes and backhanders and putting contractors in place who would pay those.”

Corrupt relationships

Back in 2010, Cranbrook – six miles outside Exeter – was being developed as a new town.

Mark Baker was appointed head of projects and tasked with delivering the district heating project for E.ON, with Matthew Heyward employed as a quantity surveyor, responsible for signing off the work.

Priddy Engineering Ltd was controlled by Andrew Blunsdon, who paid bribes to both Baker and Heyward.

RK Civil Engineering Ltd (RKC) was run by Richard King and Timothy Patterson. Bank accounts linked to the two paid more than £1.5million to Baker and Heyward.

These companies were construction contractors who either had or wanted a commercial relationship with E.ON.

Police said Mark Baker’s role was deciding which companies should be given valuable construction contracts at Cranbrook, and later at other locations around the UK.

The bribes started in 2011 and continued through until the end of 2015.

‘It undermines how business works’

“When you talk about bribery, people think it’s just one person paying a bribe to get a contract,” DI Parkinson said.

“In this case, the employees at E.ON were putting in particular contractors who they knew would pay them bribes, and allowing them to put in inflated invoices, so the money they were getting actually came from E.ON.”

DI Parkinson says there are many more victims in this case.

“There were lots of other businesses who were bidding for work, but in hindsight they were never going to get that work, because they were not part of this corrupt relationship,” he said.

“It undermines how business operates and has a wider impact.”

Fake references, false invoices and wage slips and multiple house moves

Police say between 2011 and 2014, Mark and Angela Baker moved house four times, with each of the moves “tainted by fraud”.

In 2012 they moved from Lincolnshire to Devon to be closer to the site in Cranbrook.

In their rental application they falsely declared that Angela Baker worked for RKC on an annual salary of £60,000. Timothy Paterson enabled this fraud by creating a reference and fake wage slips.

In 2013 the Bakers started the process of buying a house with a mortgage in Okehampton.

RKC paid the deposit and obtained the mortgage by fraud, and paid for improvements to the home.

Angela Baker told the bank she was working for RKC on a salary of £85,000 per year, with fake wage slips again created to disguise the fraud.

After spending some of the money on a car and holidays, the Bakers bought a house in Yorkshire in late 2013.

Angela Baker again claimed to the mortgage lender to be a RKC employee earning £84,000 a year, using a fake wage slip.

‘A parasitic blight on society’

In the summer of 2012, after the Bakers had moved to Devon, Andrew Blunsdon further bribed Mark Baker by arranging and paying for an air conditioning unit to be installed in his wife’s florist shop.

DI Parkinson said: “These individuals believed corrupt practice was widespread in the construction industry and the method by which business was done.

“Corruption costs business and society, providing benefit for just a corrupt few. Ultimately, we all pay the price. These corrupt practices are a parasitic blight on society.”

Fraud, money laundering and acquiring criminal property

Mark Baker, 56, of Goole in Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to being bribed, four counts of fraud by false representation, being concerned in a money laundering arrangement and fraud by abuse of position.

He was jailed for three years and 10 months.

Matthew Heyward, 51, of Kingsteignton, Devon, admitted bribery and being concerned in a money laundering arrangement.

He was jailed for two years and six months.

Timothy Patterson, 56, of Derby, admitted two counts of fraud by false representation, two of bribing another person and acquiring criminal property.

He was jailed for four years.

Richard King, 51, of Husbands Bosworth in South Leicestershire, admitted fraud by false representation and two counts of bribing another person.

He was jailed for two years and five months.

Andrew Blunsdon, 57 of Winscombe in Somerset, admitted two counts of bribery.

He was given a 12-month suspended jail term and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

Angela Baker, 53, also of Goole, pleaded guilty to two fraud by false representation counts and being concerned in a money laundering arrangement.

She was given a sentence of 13 months imprisonment, suspended for two years.

‘Decent companies don’t stand a chance’

The judge at Winchester Crown Court, HHJ Rufus Taylor, said: “If you are a decent honest company, you don’t stand a chance because you haven’t paid a £1.5million bribe.

“This kind of corruption has a chilling effect and seriously undermines the proper operation of business.”

An E.ON UK spokesman said: “Our internal processes enabled us to identify this case and take decisive action. Reflecting our zero-tolerance approach to bribery, we reported the matter to the police and have fully supported their investigation.”

Remember to take photo ID

In a post on Tuesday Owl explained why this election is particularly important, listed the candidates in each East Devon Division, and gave an opinion on who to vote for in each.

There appears to be a general air of despair around what is going on in the world but now is not the time to “opt out”. It only plays into the hands of the zealots on the extremes. Nor is it the moment to experiment with unproven snake oil remedies.

It’s only 97 years since we gained universal franchise – use it!

This extract from the Exeter Observer shows how close the result is likely to be

Extract from Exeter Observer

More In Common polling suggests the Liberal Democrats are likely to become the largest party on Devon County Council, leaving them potentially placed to govern with support from the Independents in East Devon with which it runs the district council.

It also thinks Greens support will translate into a larger number of county seats this year, possibly at the expense of Labour in Exeter.

Electoral Calculus, however, reckons the Conservatives will lose control of the county council but nevertheless remain its largest party, partly because it thinks centre-left voters are more likely to over-estimate the likelihood that they will vote.

The Liberal Democrats are certainly managing expectations here. While they hope to take control in currently Conservative-run Gloucestershire, Shropshire and Wiltshire they are more circumspect about its prospects in Devon.

Don’t forget photo ID

Sixteen years in and the Tories still claim that sticking with the same old unimaginative career politicians doing the same things they’ve done for years is the right choice for our communities. SEND and children’s services have been failing year after year for more than a decade; over £200m of highway repair works are outstanding while Conservative leadership has decided to carry on with horrendously inefficient, privatised, cost-plus maintenance contracts – and while they might claim otherwise, they’ve accumulated over £100m of debt since taking office, and spent £200m of the £300m savings that they inherited in 2009.

It’s time for change. Labour and the Green Party can’t win here to deliver it. And for anyone voting Reform: the best way to send the Conservatives a message and demand better for Devon is to vote Lib Dem, kick the Tories out of County Hall, and get a local champion who will listen and act on our communities’ behalf – not just parrot a party line. 

Last July, the country threw out a failing Conservative government that had run out of ideas. Thursday is Devon’s chance to do the same with our County Council.

The full list of candidates in each Division and Owl’s view of who to vote for was posted yesterday.

It’s going to be a tight race so don’t waste your vote.

For those up for a long read “Velociraptor_1906”, who claims to be a Devonian who has lived all across the county so can provide a decent amount of local knowledge, posted this insight on the election nine days ago. 

If the insights for the rest of Devon are as informed and plausible as those for East Devon then this is worth a read.

This campaign seems eerily quiet. But the councillors you elect will have important decisions to make on Labour’s plans for reorganising local authorities: eliminating district councils; writing rules that eliminate our County, and insisting on creating overarching mayoral authorities covering over 3,000 sq miles! 

These councillors, quite likely, will be the only ones you have if and when the government has its way on disbanding districts. They will be representing you on everything from planning, adult and social care to fixing the potholes and collecting your rubbish.

With fewer of them, councillors will be even more remote.

Despite the upheaval in the world order created by the election of Donald Trump and Labour’s struggles with the economic poisoned chalice it inherited. Now is not the time for apathy. It only plays into the hands of the zealots on the extremes. Nor is it time to experiment with snake oil remedies.

Below is the list of candidates for each County Division. They have been compiled from the Devon County list but please let Owl know if any transcription errors or omissions have inadvertently slipped in.

For reasons Owl doesn’t understand, East Devon is the only district in the County to have Divisions (two) represented by two councillors; Broadclyst and Exmouth.

The outgoing Devon County Council was controlled by the Conservatives, as East Devon District Council (EDDC) was until 2020. Facing National headwinds the Tories followed their instincts and tried to cancel this election on the grounds that they were on the fast track to reorganisation with their “oven ready plan”.

This didn’t fool the Government and the outgoing council’s latest draft proposal included five options.

It’s time for a change and EDDC since 2020 shows how the LibDems can create an inclusive administration. The reality is that the LibDems are the only realistic challengers with the experience and vision.

A couple of “Heritage Party” candidates appear in the lists. This seems to be another insurgent right wing party advocating “Traditional Values” and “No more Lockdowns” amongst other things.

Axminster Division: 

This is a Division where Owl would definitely back Independent Paul Hayward. Currently he is deputy leader of EDDC experience vital in any discussion of reorganisation.  The outgoing councillor is not seeking re-election.                                  

BARLOW MARSHALL Honey,	Labour and Co-Operative Party;
BROWN Jenny,	Local Conservatives (from Honiton)
BYRNE Matthew Denis,	Green Party Candidate
HAYWARD Paul Graham,	Independent Candidate;
ROBINSON Sue,	Liberal Democrats;
SALWAY Philip James,	Reform UK

Broadclyst Division(two councillors):

This Division has been represented by an alliance between Henry Gent, ostensibly Green but of a distinctly blue hue (see Owl’s post “many shades of green” ) and the retiring Randall Johnson pursuer of development led growth and closures of community hospitals.

Eleanor Rylance (excellent Chair of EDDC) and Andreas Glover are Owl’s choice here for a clean sweep.

BAILEY Brian Arthur	The Conservative Party Candidate;
GENT Henry,	Green Party Candidate;
GLOVER Andrea,	Liberal Democrats;
GOUDIE Lisa,	Heritage Party;
GUNDIN Fernando,	Reform UK
HEALY Kian,	Labour Party;
HOLMES Molly Jane,	Labour Party Candidate;
JAGO Kate,	Green Party Candidate
RYLANCE Eleanor,	Liberal Democrats;
THOMPSON Cynthia	The Conservative Party Candidate
VANSTONE Nat	Reform UK.

Exmouth Division (two councillors)

Scott and Trail both voted to cancel the elections – so time for change. Matt Hall is an experienced EDDC councillor and his running mate Fran McElhone has a deep grasp of local issues. Fran was a very independently minded  local journalist reporting on the Tory “goings on” during the formative years of East Devon Watch.

ACKLAND Hilary Anne,	Labour & Co-operative Party
BROWN Helen,	Reform UK
DOLICZNY Lou,	Green Party Candidate
FERMOR Si	Reform UK;
HALL Matt	Liberal Democrats
HAWKES Ben Anthony	Labour Party,
MCELHONE Fran,	Liberal Democrats;
SCOTT Richard,	The Conservative Party Candidate;
TRAIL Jeff	The Conservative Party Candidate;
WILSON Daniel	Independent

Exmouth and Budleigh Salterton Coastal Division

The Division vacated at long last by “venerable” Christine Channon, a good enough reason in itself to change, No one is more local than Exmouth born and bred Nick Hookway, again a candidate with plenty of solid EDDC experience as Portfolio Holder Culture, Leisure, Sport and Tourism.

HOOKWAY Nick,	Liberal Democrats;
MCINTOSH James Declan	Labour Party Candidate;
RIDDELL Henry Lloyd	The Conservative Party Candidate
ROSSER Mike,	The Green Party
THOMAS Paul	Reform UK

Feniton and Honiton Division

Phill Twiss, County Cabinet member for finance is seeking re-election and another who voted to cancel the elections – knows where the skeletons are buried!

Time for a change with Richard Jefferies, another EDDC councillor with experience of getting things done.

ALCOCK Barry	Reform UK
CASEMORE Steve	Labour Party
COLLINS Jane	Green Party Candidate
FAITHFULL Peter Hamilton,	Independent
FOTHERINGHAM Jo	Independent;
JEFFERIES Richard,	Liberal Democrats
TWISS Phil	Local Conservatives.

Otter Valley Division

Here Owl would choose the Independent Jess Bailey, seeking re-election. She is the exception to Owl’s general rule of only considering Indys who are prepared to sign up to being members of EDDC’s “Democratic Alliance” formal political grouping, founded on upholding the Nolan Principles. (Which excludes many Indys in these tables).

Jess has shown enormous courage in pursuing what County knew about the John Humphrey affair and he campaigns on local issues have featured in many “Watch” articles.

AHERNE Janice,	Reform UK Candidate;
BAILEY Jess	Independent;
CARTER Paul Richard,	Local Conservatives;
COLLINS Beth,	Liberal Democrats;
SUTTON Rachel Helen	Labour Party.

Seaton and Colyton Division 

This should be a no-brainer with Paul Arnott, current Leader of EDDC standing. He has demonstrated how inclusive local politics can be made to work, with his coalition in East Devon bringing together councillors of different political colours with a common aim of serving the electorate. Perhaps more important in this election is that he has had the ideas on how the Government’s ill-conceived reorganisation might be implemented and has worked with other Devon District Leaders to form a consensus. His election will be vital if this mess is to be resolved.

[Interestingly he is competing against the decidedly not local “Local Conservative” Ben Ingham and one of the EDDC Indys who fails to pass Owl’s “General Rule on Indys”].

ARNOTT Paul,	Liberal Democrats;
HEATH John David,	Independent;
INGHAM Ben,	Local Conservatives (from Exmouth)
KNOTT Paul Graeme	Labour Party;
WALSH Jim	Reform UK

Sidmouth Division

Owl has only recently reported on how the “raving Monster” Stuart Hughes couldn’t find the time to attend the Sidmouth Hustings, and that neither Reform nor Labour had the courtesy to answer the invitation from Vision Group for Sidmouth.

With Denise Bickley voters could get “two for the price of one” as she is regarded by many greens as greener than most of them.

Time for Sidmouth to get a grown up councillor.

BICKLEY Denise,	Liberal Democrats;
BULLOCK Suzanne Mary,	Labour Party;
HERBERT Basil Thomas	Reform UK;
HUGHES Stuart	Local Conservatives.

Whimple and Blackdown Division

If you want to read reasons why it’s time for long serving Councillors like Ian Chubb and Phil Twiss to be booted out try this for size from 2016:

Exmouth Seafront Cost Increases – Fantasy, Incompetent, Iconic or Ironic.

Owl’s view: back the LibDem

CHUBB Iain,	Local Conservatives;
CONNOR Cathy,	Liberal Democrats;
MALAWANA Johann,	Labour Party;
OWEN Steve,	Green Party Candidate
SABINE Andre	Heritage Party;
WILLEY Dave	Reform UK.

Feargal Sharkey comments on National Audit Office (NAO) Report on water regulators:

The @NAOorguk‘s damming report into the water industry and regulation is out today (25 April) “The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and water regulators have failed”.

At the current rate of progress it’s going to take 700 years just to fix the leaky pipes, we’re going to need another 5 billion litres of water, which we don’t have, by 2050 and last year WCs spent 4.7 million hours dumping sewage into the environment. 

Govt’s response, regurgitate a 30 year old bit of legislation. 

See: Pollution and Sewage – Have Devon Tories, including David Reed MP, given up? Where the LibDems tried to strengthen the legislation and the “local” Tories turned their backs.

Bald summary of NAO findings

Will the threat of prison time be enough to stop polluting water bosses?

Read this extract from Richard Vaughan in the i paper

…As the indefatigable punk rocker-cum-rivers campaigner Feargal Sharkey has pointed out, the power to imprison water bosses for impeding investigations into sewage spills has been in existence since 1995.

Government officials strongly refute this, however, insisting that the new powers will for the first time give regulators the ability to pursue, investigate and convict the worst offending water company executives, and goes much further than the measures included in the Environment Act 1995. 

Crucially, it will be the water companies that will have to pay for the investigations carried out into their illegal sewage dumping, handing the Environment Agency the much needed resources to bring polluters to justice. 

But ministers may find that to finally turn doubters into believers when it comes to fixing the sewage crisis, they will have to put words into action and finally throw polluting water bosses behind bars.

Might Susan Davy be first in line?

Owl wonders if her new PR “Whizz Kid”, Simon Jupp, has a “Get Out of Jail Free” card tucked in his back pocket?

Though according to this excoriating report from the National Audit Office he could have included the Environment Agency, the Drinking Water Inspectorate and Defra as well.

But all will be well as Steve Reed, Environment Secretary, says polluting water bosses face up to two years in jail for illegal water spills (with caveats).

See today’s post: Pollution and Sewage – Have Devon Tories, including David Reed MP, given up?

Regulators have failed to deliver a trusted and resilient water sector – NAO press release

• Consumer trust is at an all-time low and confidence in water companies to act in the interest of the environment and provide a reliable service has fallen
• Government and the regulators have failed to drive sufficient investment in the water sector which now needs to build 30 new projects at a cost of £52bn to meet future water demand
• Regulators have not managed the rising tide of risk associated with the sector, which is contributing to increasing bills for customers
• While the UK has one of the highest standards of drinking water in the world, performance has not improved for almost a decade in key measures, including mains bursts, supply interruptions and pollution incidents

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and water regulators have failed to drive necessary investment for the sector, which now faces significant environmental, supply and infrastructure challenges, says the National Audit Office (NAO).

The report audits the three water regulators (Ofwat, the Environment Agency, and the Drinking Water Inspectorate) and Defra, which sets policies for the water sector. It examines their effectiveness in driving operational improvements; ensuring the nation’s future water supply and attracting necessary investments to meet government targets.

To tackle the challenges, including an anticipated daily shortfall of 5 billion litres of water by 2050, the sector now needs to attract an unprecedented amount of investment. Ofwat anticipates a 70% increase in infrastructure spending, totalling £47 billion in the next five years. This is part of £290 billion required to meet government targets over the next 25 years.

The need for investment coincides with a period of weakening financial performance, declining public trust and falling investor confidence. In 2023-24, Ofwat was concerned about the financial resilience of 10 of the 16 major water companies.

Although there is no national plan, there are 30 major water supply projects in development, including nine reservoirs. Ofwat estimates these projects will cost an additional £52 billion to build.

Over the next five years water companies must fulfil 18,000 actions to reach the Environment Agency’s (EA) expectations on environmental performance – this accounts for £27 billion of the £47 billion enhancement spend. Out of the 8,780 actions completed by the water companies in the last five years EA has conducted site inspections on 1%.

The regulators do not have a good understanding on the condition of infrastructure assets, as they do not have a set of metrics to assess their condition. On the work water companies have done, they have overspent for the last four years (some of these costs will be added to consumers bills) and moved slowly. At the current rate, it would take 700 years to replace the entire existing water network.

The poor performance has led to a record low in consumer trust. The highest-profile cause of environmental harm is the use of storm overflows, where companies release untreated sewage into rivers and seas.

The Environment Agency and Ofwat are taking enforcement action against every wastewater company over their management of sewage. There is no regulator responsible for proactively inspecting wastewater assets to prevent further environmental harm.

The NAO report recommends that Defra must understand the costs and deliverability of its plans, alongside the impact they will have on customers’ bills. Defra needs to address the gaps in regulatory responsibilities, and Ofwat and the other regulators need to work together to improve investor confidence and build consumer trust.

“Given the unprecedented situation facing the sector, Defra and the regulators need to act urgently to address industry performance and resilience to ensure the sector can meet government targets and achieve value for money over the long term for bill payers.”

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO

Read the full report

Regulating for investment and outcomes in the water sector

We all know that recent Environment Agency figures show South West Water discharged raw sewage into waterways for longer than any other company last year. It was spilt from storm overflows for a total of 544,439 hours.

It has also been revealed that Budleigh is one of the worst bathing beaches for causing sickness needing medical support.

In Wednesday’s parliamentary debate on sewage, Richard Foord MP argued that Ofwat should be scrapped but where was Budleigh’s and Exmouth’s MP – David Reed?

In this debate, contributions from Lib Dem MPs, who were trying to strengthen proposed regulations, outnumbered their Tory counterparts 3:1. Those nine Tories who did speak didn’t stay to vote.

Whilst four Devon Lib Dem MPs spoke, not one single Devon Tory rose to the occasion. Not even David Reed, fresh from his “On the same page” April 10 meeting could be bothered to promote his constituents’ concern or share whatever progress he has made. 

There is no evidence from the record that David Reed even attended the debate, though he did speak the day before on Birmingham: waste collection.

[Psssst David, isn’t your constituency at the other end of the M5?]

LibDem MPs from Cornwall, Somerset, and Dorset also spoke.

Tim Farron (LibDem) opened the debate claiming the Lib Dems were  “the constructive Opposition in this place” holding the Government to account and urging them to make the big changes that Britain voted for last July.

He summarised his impressions in a post on “X”

“Astonishing that so few Tories turned up for the vital debate on sewage pollution just now. Such a shame too that the government opposed the Liberal Democrat proposal to strengthen the regulation of the water industry to prevent this outrageous pollution…”

[The 64 LidDems were supported by Greens, Independents, Plaid Cymru and Reform]

For the record this is what the Devon LibDEm MPs said:

Steve Darling (Torbay) (LD)

Over Easter in Torbay, we had five sewage spills according to the Surfers Against Sewage app. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is extremely disappointing to say the least that, rather than colleagues just getting their cossie and towel to go swimming at their favourite swimming spot, they must now also check the sewage leak app? It is outrageous.

Caroline Voaden (South Devon) (LD)

In South Devon last year, we had an astonishing 49,904 hours of sewage leaks, or 5.69 years-worth of sewage pouring into the glorious Dart and Avon and into the sea around South Devon. Meanwhile, my constituents write to me about bills that have gone up by as much as 50%. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is an outrage that the privatised water companies are able to carry on increasing bills, increasing dividends to shareholders and paying multimillion-pound salaries to CEOs while this obscenity of sewage pouring into our rivers, seas and lakes continues?

Martin Wrigley (Newton Abbot) (LD)

I thank the Secretary of State. I have just been reading about his core reforms, and I note that, as he has said, core reform 3 changes the way in which the season for bathing is determined. However, it continues the principle that water is not tested by the Environment Agency throughout the year. This is an important omission that must be rectified. During a bathing season, the water can become polluted. Will the Secretary of State consider introducing all-year-round testing for our Blue Flag areas?

Richard Foord (Honiton and Sidmouth) (LD)

The hon. Lady has mentioned Ofwat. Last August, it recommended penalties for four water companies amounting to £168 million, but so far it has not collected one penny. Does she agree that Ofwat needs to be scrapped?