Mark Tami – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Tami on 2014-04-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage change there has been in the average cost of a water bill in each year since 2011.

Dan Rogerson

Water prices in England and Wales are reviewed by the independent economic regulator Ofwat every five years. Water prices for the 2010 to 2015 period were set in Ofwat’s 2009 water price review.

The percentage change in the average cost (in real prices) of a combined water and sewerage bill in England and Wales during the 2010-2015 period is as follows: -0.6% (2010/11), 0.2% (2011/12), -0.1% (2012/13). The forecast for 2013/14 is 0.5% and for 2014/15 around 2%. The changes year on year usually relate to the profile of water industry investment agreed in the 2009 price review. For 2014/15, water companies are taking steps to hold customer bills down and in some cases are giving up price increases that were allowed for in 2009.

Ofwat’s 2014 water price review is now underway and will determine water prices for the 2015 to 2020 period. Most water companies are proposing flat or declining bills from 2015.