Ben Maguire raises Padstow sewage illness in Parliament

A hospital bed. A stretch of sea officially rated "Excellent" for bathing. And a Cornwall MP on his feet in the House of Commons, asking how those two things can possibly be true at the same time.

‘Something has gone very seriously wrong’

Speaking during a major debate in Parliament, the Liberal Democrat MP for North Cornwall, Ben Maguire, called for "urgent reform" of the water sector and set out what he described as the "devastating" impact of sewage pollution on public health.

Ben told MPs that one of his constituents from Padstow had been hospitalised just weeks ago after becoming seriously ill following exposure to contaminated seawater.

He went further, telling the Commons that around 80% of hospitalisations linked to sewage pollution occur after people have been swimming in waters rated "Good" or "Excellent" by the Environment Agency, a figure he says points to a "real and urgent" need for complete reform of the sector.

The ratings people are trusting with their health

For Ben, the gap between what a bathing water rating promises and what actually happens in the sea is the heart of the problem.

"I have hundreds of constituents in North Cornwall who have suffered horribly after swimming and surfing in waters contaminated by sewage, including one constituent from Padstow who was hospitalised with a really serious illness just weeks ago," he said.

"When people are being told our beaches are 'Good' or 'Excellent', they trust it's safe to enter the water and enjoy. However, sewage pollution at these exact same bathing sites is still making people seriously ill, which tells me something has gone badly wrong with the way the Environment Agency is overseeing water safety."

Calling for accountability, including prison sentences

Ben's call goes further than a review of the ratings system. He wants South West Water bosses held properly accountable for the company's failures, including, he says, through prison sentences.

"My constituents just do not have confidence in a system that is failing to properly protect their health, which is why I've now called for complete and urgent reform of the water sector, and for South West Water bosses to be held properly accountable for their failures, including through prison sentences."

Ben's comments came during a Commons debate on the public ownership of the water sector, held on Monday 14 September. The full Hansard record of the debate is there for anyone who wants it, though the Padstow constituent at the centre of it all remains, for now, unnamed.

📷Ben Maguire MP speaking in the House of Commons. Credit: video still