Gideon Amos MP says sewage pollution is 'a national disgrace'

Taunton and Wellington MP, Gideon Amos, has called for changes to Bathing Water Status regulations in a debate he led in Parliament this week.

 

Defra are currently inviting the public, community groups, environmental groups, farmers, businesses and local authorities to share their views on modernising the rules.

 

Speaking in Westminster Hall, Mr Amos said: “We are lucky to have French Weir and Longrun Meadow (in Taunton) as one of the 27 new bathing water sites.

 

“I sincerely thank the incredible volunteers, the Friends of French Weir Park, who worked with me to apply for and achieve designated Bathing Water Status there last year.

 

“It means that, for the first time, we know the river’s water quality. It is variable and now proven to be poor, generally speaking.

 

“We now have that information because it is publicly available, and we can work towards getting the investment we need to improve the water. I am sure there are similar groups across the country.”

 

But he added: “Sewage pollution is a national disgrace. Time and again we see reports of raw sewage being discharged into our rivers, lakes and seas, turning what should be places of recreation into sites of contamination.

 

“In my constituency, further downstream on the Tone, examples of recent discharges of untreated effluent are commonplace.

 

“At Hook Bridge, which could otherwise be a charming stretch of the River Tone, there have been over 188 hours of discharge in the first eight weeks of 2025 alone. Residents are rightly appalled by the sewage releases.”

 

Mr Amos said he welcomed the suggestion of removing the automatic five-year de-designation rule for bathing waters. At present, new sites could lose their status at the end of five years if the water quality does not improve.

 

But he was concerned about the possible introduction of feasibility tests for bathing sites. “That would mean that, if it is deemed too difficult or expensive to improve water quality, a site could be denied designation altogether.”

 

Mr Amos also called for better quality testing, and better integration with other monitoring systems, adding: “We should be monitoring sewage volume from spills, not just hours.”

 

He said: “The reality is that our inland bathing waters are already in a dire state.”

 

In reply, Emma Hardy, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said: “We completely accept and believe that the water system at the moment is broken.”

 

She outlined the measures being put in place by the government to improve bathing water and said there would be an official response to the consultation.