The Government are pleased to announce that today we have launched a consultation on strengthening the Environment Agency’s tools for enforcing against offences committed by water companies.
Currently, the Environment Agency has to be satisfied “beyond reasonable doubt”—the criminal standard of proof—that an offence has been committed to issue monetary penalties. We are proposing changes that would allow the Environment Agency to impose penalties to the civil standard of proof “on the balance of probabilities”. This will enable minor to moderate offences to be enforced more quickly, cost effectively and proportionately.
We are also consulting on the introduction of automatic penalties. These fixed penalties would be triggered in specific circumstances including late reporting of significant pollution incidents, failure to report monitoring data for storm and emergency overflows monthly, and where there is not accurate and reliable monitoring in place to measure water abstraction. Automatic penalties are designed to streamline the penalty process for offences that can be identified and evidenced quickly.
These changes will deliver a clear, transparent and robust enforcement regime that drives real change. The penalties will act as a proportionate deterrent, incentivising water companies to improve their performance and restoring public trust.
The new penalties will sit alongside and complement the existing enforcement options, including prosecution and unlimited penalties to the criminal standard of proof, that will continue to be used to enforce more serious offences.
We encourage everyone with an interest in the performance of the water sector to share their views and help shape the future of enforcement.
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