Water bills set to rise by £94 over next five years

Water bills in England and Wales are set to rise by an average £94 over the next five years, the water regulator Ofwat has said.

The figure varies by region with Thames customers seeing an increase of £99 or 23%, Anglian £66 or 13% and Southern Water £183, an increase of 44%.

The typical £19 a year increase is intended to fund investment for improvements such as replacing leaking pipes and reducing sewage discharges into rivers and seas.

It comes as suppliers have come under increasing scrutiny over their environmental and financial performance over a number of years.

On Thursday, Labour will outline a crackdown on the industry, promising consumers higher compensation for sewage failures and the power to hold water executives to account.

The new Secretary of State for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed, will also meet water company bosses to discuss performance issues and ways of improving the sector's performance.