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Independent Water Commission

My hon. Friend makes a very important point. We are currently going through a dry spell and seeing hosepipe bans in many parts of the country, yet in the winter it rained very heavily. The reason we have hosepipe bans is that we do not have the reservoirs to catch the rain when it falls and then use it in drier periods, which is because we have not built a new reservoir for 30 years. That changes now: these plans include the intention to build nine new reservoirs. To speed up the planning process, I as the Secretary of State am taking control of consents for reservoirs, so that they can be approved much faster and go ahead to provide the country with the clean drinking water we need.