Category Archives: Water

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22 Jun, 2024
Stephen 0 Comment
What will be my FIRST act as your MP?
ocean waves at sunrise

Original public domain image from Wikimedia Commons

Stop the sewage dumping. How? The first practical step a Member of Parliament (MP) can take to stop companies like Anglian Water dumping sewage into waterways like the Thames estuary is to introduce new leglislation containing the following:

  1. Sewage Tax: Introducing a tax on the £2.2 billion annual profits of water companies to ensure they are financially responsible for cleaning up their own mess.
  2. Ban on Executive Bonuses: Prohibiting bonuses for water company executives until the sewage dumping problem is resolved.
  3. Real Enforcement: Strengthening enforcement to ensure compliance and investing in infrastructure to eliminate the overspill system, treating and filtering every drop of wastewater.

For more detailed information, you can check their official manifesto on sewage policy​ (Liberal Democrats)​.

Stephen 0 Comment
Protest vs business
Protesting Sewage in the Sea with free ice cream – but taking money from local businesses selling ice cream…

While I was getting my anti-sewage ice cream, the police showed up and a man from Scoop berated the campaigners for taking his business: he paid rates and rent and it wasn’t fair.

I said to him cleaner water means more visitors and more ice cream sold. He melted away.

So how do you balance protest for the greater good with a local business which is also good? I think the campaigners would not have made a big difference. How many people today didn’t buy an ice cream because they got a free one. I saw about 10 people. But they may not have bought one.

So there is a price to pay for democracy. Maybe if they just pretended to give away ice cream? But that might have annoyed people coming g over to the ice cream van! I don’t know.

17 Jun, 2024
Stephen 0 Comment
Fancy a free poo coloured ice cream?

On Tuesday the 18th, “Sewage sundaes” will be handed out on Southend’s seafront to highlight the pollution on the city’s beaches. The campaign, organised by 38 Degrees, features free poo-themed ice cream to draw attention to sewage discharges in Southend’s estuary and other waterways and to demand action from the next government.

Matthew McGregor, chief executive of 38 Degrees, stated, “Summer holidays are approaching, but our seaside is threatened. While our ice creams won’t actually contain human waste, the point is serious. The people of Southend deserve clean seas. We’ll be collecting signatures for a petition demanding the next Prime Minister address sewage spills.”

This protest follows a significant increase in sewage spills by Anglian Water in 2023. Local beachgoers and swimmers have recently rallied near Southend Pier with Surfers Against Sewage, calling for cleaner seas.

I’m meeting up with them at 11.30am on Marine Parade if you’d like to come along.

16 Jun, 2024
Stephen 0 Comment
The plan to stop the Sh*t in our waters

It is not hard to do. The water companies are just not doing it and the outgoing government didn’t make them. And I include Anna Firth and James Duddridge. Whatever they promise or say, this is what they have actually done. No more. The Lib Dems will work for you to stop this irresponsible greed. We’re being listened to as well.

How?

1. New Water Regulator

2. Ban on Executive Bonuses.

3. Local Environmental Experts & Community involvement. We hold them accountable. We measure the water quality not them.

The government’s Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan aimed to gradually stop pollution from untreated sewage overflows But it was useless. Overflows still expected to spill untreated sewage by 2040.

The solution is: remove the overspill system entirely, treat, clean and filter every drop. Stop wasting money on CEOs, Directors, Contractors, invest in your network.

And don’t forget who doesn’t work for you.

30 May, 2024
Stephen 0 Comment
Southend against Sewage

I was at the Surfers Against Sewage Paddle Out on the 18th of May.

Yes, that’s me holding the sign in the green t-shirt with the casettes on it. Possibly should have worn a shirt if I’d known I’d be posting the photo! The solution to problems like this in our society, come down to us using the law to control the worst extremes of capitalism. Water and Sanitation is a human right. Here’s is what we the Liberal Democrats will change to make clean water happen and compel water companies to work for us.

Scrap Ofwat. We, the Lib Dems, want to completely overhaul the industry by scrapping the regulator Ofwat and turning water companies into “public benefit companies” that put the environment before profits. Below is Lib Dem MP Tim Farron on Radio 4’s Today programme, talking about our plans to get sewage out of rivers and off our beaches. (I added this radio interview the 30th of May).

Get the Tories out of power. There is no hope of change from the Tories. In April 2024, Conservative and Labour MPs, including Anna Firth, voted to further weaken Ofwat’s powers to do something about the water companies. Here are the details. We can have clean rivers, fair water prices and infrastructure investment. Only about 120 miles east of Essex in the Netherlands, 100% of sewage is treated in line with EU legislation. In the UK it is what? We don’t even know!

Surfers Against Sewage have stood up for clean water for many years, thank you to them!

Stephen 0 Comment
Dogs on the Beach

This is about more than dogs on the beach. It is about the special relationship between humans and their dogs and our rights to free roam on the shore. Yes, the council can legally stop us from going on the beach during the summer and yes dog poo is bad. We almost had a solution three years ago when 58% supported it. This time the consultation didn’t even mention a dog beach. How is a that a fair consultation?

However. Who’s beach is it? It’s everyone’s. I’d include all plants and animals in that too. The environment needs to be respected and protected. A minority, according to the council’s own consultations are stopping the rest of us using this beautiful and free amenity. We have even proposed a compromise, only a small part of the 7 mile stretch? The answer was still no.

I’ve been fighting this for years, and I’ll keep fighting it. It has only been in place 15 years. Early humans were in Kent on the Thames Estuary over half million years ago.

The PSPO (Public Space Protection Order) has been renewed for another 3 years. It is disproportionate and unreasonable, but we can’t afford to bring it to court and petitions, consultations and protests have done nothing. I think the council sees our beach as an asset to sell to visitors on behalf of a narrow about of businesses in the area. I’m all for businesses and making a living, but some balance is needed. Dare I say it, a more Liberal and Democratic balance…

You can join the Southend Dog Beach Campaign here. Remember, every dog has it’s day.

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