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Campaigners have expressed their anger after the government voted down an amendment to a bill that would put a legal duty on water companies to stop raw sewage from being dumped into waterways.

They are calling for water companies to pay to restore England’s coastlines after pouring sewage into rivers and the sea.

Last week, MPs voted by 268 to 204 with the government to defeat an amendment to the Environment Bill tabled in the Lords which sought to place a new duty on water companies to reduce raw sewage discharges into rivers and demonstrate reductions in the harm caused by the discharges.

A total of 265 Conservative MPs helped vote down the amendment, while 22 rebelled against the government and voted in favour.

Sewage can be pumped out of the sewerage system and into rivers through combined sewer overflows – otherwise known as a storm overflow or release valve.

The overflows are designed to release excess water following heavy rainfall or a storm to stop sewage backing up into homes.

To stop this happening, water companies are allowed to release the rainwater, and a smaller amount of untreated sewage into the country’s waterways.

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The Environment Agency has reported that in the last year, raw sewage was discharged into coastal waters and rivers in England more than 400,000 times, which Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) branded “unacceptable”.

Commenting on footage of raw sewage being released into the rivers and seas around the country, Luke Pollard, Labour’s shadow Defra secretary, said: “People are right to be upset at the dreadful state of England’s rivers.

“Not one English river is in a healthy condition and there has been zero improvements since 2016.

“The government is to blame for allowing water companies to vent raw sewage into our rivers and sea seemingly at will.

“The Conservatives should urgently U-turn on their decision to block the Environment Bill amendment so that water companies are forced to reduce the amount of sewage they pump into our rivers and seas.”

Hugo Tagholm, the chief executive of Surfers Against Sewage, said water companies have not “got a right to destroy these spaces”.

He told BBC Breakfast: “The amendment that is being called for is reasonable. We believe the water companies need to cut into dividends they make every year to restore our rivers and our coastlines.

“They haven’t got a right to destroy these spaces and need to take the ambitious steps to restore them and we need to make sure the industry is not putting their profits ahead of making our spaces safe.

“We were really disappointed that MPs failed to back this common sense amendment to put the legal duty on water companies to invest in the right infrastructure to stop raw sewage pollution pouring into our rivers and into our ocean.

“It’s gone beyond a joke now. Last year alone water companies were responsible for over 400,000 separate sewage pollution events.”

Boris Johnson’s official spokesman said: “We completely agree the current failure of water companies to adequately reduce sewage discharges is unacceptable.”

He added that “tougher legal duties” were being placed on water companies and “we will continue to listen to MPs who have legitimate concerns”.

It has been reported that it would cost between £150bn and £160bn to make waterways safer.

Defra says this work would include the complete separation of the sewerage systems which could lead to “potentially significant disruption for homes, businesses and infrastructure across the country”.

However, they have “made it clear to water companies that they must significantly reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows as a priority”.

The Bill will go back before peers for scrutiny after the amendment was voted down.

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Major German bank to offer crypto trading by 2026 amid bank ‘FOMO’

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Major German bank to offer crypto trading by 2026 amid bank ‘FOMO’

Major German bank to offer crypto trading by 2026 amid bank ‘FOMO’

Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe execs once ruled out adopting crypto over concerns of volatility and risk, and the banking giant also blocked customer crypto transactions back in 2015.

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Analysts raise chance of SOL, XRP and LTC ETF approval to 95%

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Analysts raise chance of SOL, XRP and LTC ETF approval to 95%

Analysts raise chance of SOL, XRP and LTC ETF approval to 95%

Crypto ETF summer has arrived with America’s first staked Solana ETP and increased odds for other spot altcoin funds, according to analysts.

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PM faces threat of major rebellion during key vote today

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PM faces threat of major rebellion during key vote today

Sir Keir Starmer continues to face the threat of a major rebellion during a key vote on welfare reforms later – despite making last-minute concessions to disgruntled Labour MPs.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall has confirmed that all existing claimants of the personal independence payment (PIP), the main disability benefit, will be protected from changes to eligibility.

The combined value of the standard Universal Credit allowance and the health top-up will rise “at least in line with inflation” every year of this parliament.

And an additional £300m for employment support for sick and disabled people in 2026 has been announced, which will rise every year after.

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Welfare cuts ‘needed to be made’

Ms Kendall has also promised that a consultation into PIP – “co-produced” with disabled people – will be published next autumn.

She said the U-turn on welfare cuts will cost taxpayers about £2.5bn by 2030 – less than half the £4.8bn the government had expected to save with its initial proposals.

Modelling by Ms Kendall’s own department, released yesterday, suggested the proposals would push 150,000 more people into poverty by 2030, down from the 250,000 estimated under the original plan.

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But after announcing the U-turns, Labour MPs were still publicly saying they could not back the plans as they do not go far enough to allay their concerns.

Disabilities minister Stephen Timms would not say he was “confident” the proposals would pass the Commons when asked on Sky News’ Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge.

“We’ve got a very strong package, I certainly hope it passes,” he replied.

Read more: What are the concessions to the welfare reform bill?

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‘Disabled people thrown under the bus’

A total of 86 charities united yesterday to call on MPs to reject the reforms, saying they will harm disabled people and calling it “a political choice”.

The likes of Oxfam, Child Action Poverty Group, Mind and Shelter said the bill has been brought to a vote without consulting disabled people and without any assessment “of its impact on health and employment outcomes”.

When asked to name “a single” disability organisation in favour of the reforms, Ms Kendall declined to do so.

Several Labour MPs indicated they would still vote against the changes, leaving the government in the dark over how big a rebellion it still may face.

Ms Kendall tried to allay their fears, telling MPs: “I believe we have a fair package, a package that protects existing claimants because they’ve come to rely on that support.”

Richard Burgon presented a petition to parliament yesterday evening against the cuts, signed by more than 77,000 people.

Several Labour MPs questioned why the vote was going ahead before the review into PIP is published – including Rachael Maskell, who said she could not “countenance sick and disabled people being denied support” and added: “It is a matter of conscience.”

Connor Naismith said the concessions “undoubtedly improve efforts to secure welfare reform which is fair”, but added: “Unfortunately, I do not believe these concessions yet go far enough.”

Nadia Whittome
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Labour rebel Nadia Whittome said the government was ‘ignoring’ disabled people

Nadia Whittome accused the government of “ignoring” disabled people and urged ministers to go “back to the drawing board”.

Ian Byrne told the Commons he will vote against the “cruel cuts” to disability benefits because the “so-called concessions go nowhere near far enough”.

The vote will take place this evening, with coverage on Sky News’ Politics Hub live blog and on TV.

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