Today the Independent Water Commission’s final report set out recommendations for reform to improve the water sector regulatory system in England and Wales.
Commenting on behalf of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Professor David Butler FREng, Chair of the National Engineering Policy Centre working group on wastewater and public health said:
“Managing a system as complicated as water is an issue with engineering at its heart, and when we looked at this issue a year ago with a focus on public health, we identified the need for a much more joined-up vision of what we want our water system to deliver. Public health needs to be much more prominent in how our water system is designed, managed and regulated."
“This report’s recommendations make great steps towards addressing these challenges, and we particularly welcome the recommendation for the appointment of a Chief Engineer to the board of the regulator – engineering skills should be embedded throughout the regulator."
“However, to deliver effective change, national governments will need to balance a complex variety of needs from human health and protection of the environment, to economic sustainability. Importantly, they will also need to ensure that water infrastructure is resilient to climate change and growing consumer demand, by developing future-looking asset health metrics and outcomes-based resilience standards."
“We stand ready to support the government to take forward these recommendations and to get the best value for money from its investment in existing infrastructure, informed by our National Engineering Policy Centre project on Ageing Infrastructure, which will report in the autumn.”
