North Devon MP Nick Harvey Tackles Unfair South West Water Charges

North Devon MP Nick Harvey is upping his campaign to tackle unfairly high water bills in the the South West.

Harvey says "South West residents pay higher

water bills than anywhere else in the country. This is despite having

some of the lowest incomes in England.

The last Government commissioned a report on water bills and how inequalities across the UK

could be corrected. The findings and recommendations of the Walker

Report, as the study is known, are now being reviewed by the Water

Regulator (OFWAT).

While I welcome OFWAT's ongoing review, I'd also like to know what you as a South West resident think about the recommendations.

As you may know, I've consistently campaigned for lower

bills in the South West. In the last session of Parliament, I along

with other South West Liberal Democrat MPs

presented the Water Tariffs Bill. In it I argued for the equalisation

of water bills across the country at the current average rate. This

remedy is one of the recommendations made in the Walker Report.

I'd also want to see that "water poverty" is recognised

in the same way as "fuel poverty" whereby a household is said to be

fuel poor if it spends more than 10% of its income after tax on fuel.

It seems to me outrageous that this most fundamental resource for human

survival is not already recognised in such a way.

In any case, I would greatly appreciate it if you could

spare a few minutes to complete the survey, which you can find on the

navigation pane to the left. I believe OFWAT should be doing more to

get your feedback on what affects your household budget. I intend to

present the findings of this survey to them to make their review a more

inclusive process."

Text from Nick Harvey's website http://www.northdevonlibdems.org.uk/