Finally, water firms in sewage scandal hit by record 96 criminal investigations
A record 96 criminal investigations were launched against water companies last year after they broke environmental rules for issues including sewage spills thousands of times, The i Paper can reveal.
Water firms breached their environmental permits 4,444 times in 2025, including 18 incidents that were found to have a “major” impact on human health or the environment, according to data released under Freedom of Information laws.
The breaches were discovered as part of a ramp up in inspections following public outcry over the widespread dumping of sewage in Britain’s waterways.
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The i Paper has been calling on the Government to give the Environment Agency (EA) more resources to pursue water companies’ lawbreaking as part of its Save Britain’s Rivers campaign.
The Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds thanked The i Paper’s campaign as she confirmed that almost 100 criminal investigations had been launched.
The probes mean the EA is in the process of obtaining evidence to determine whether to pursue prosecution, which could result in multi-million pound fines or even jail time for executives.
Water companies break rules 4,400 times
The 4,444 permit breaches by water companies in England in 2025 marks the highest number ever recorded by the EA.
It also marks a more than 40 per cent increase from the previous record set in 2024, when firms were found to have breached their permits more than 3,100 times.
Breaches can include small issues, such as mislabelling samples, or far more serious offences such as discharging sewage during dry weather or failing to maintain infrastructure to prevent spills.
All nine water and sewerage companies were responsible for breaches, with Anglian Water responsible for the most (1,099), followed by Severn Trent (605) and Southern Water (596).
Overall, the EA classified 18 of the breaches as Category 1 incidents, meaning they were “associated with a major impact on human health, quality of life or the environment”.
Anglian Water, which also covers the largest geographical area, said the breaches account for 0.76 per cent of the permit conditions placed on the firm.
“While most of the breaches recorded were at the lowest categories of potential environmental impact, we take every breach seriously,” a spokesperson said.
Severn Trent said: “We have completed over 80 per cent of these actions [related to the breaches] with the majority relating to issues with no environmental impact, such as updating and securing signage.”
Among the most serious breaches was an incident in November last year in which Southern Water spilled millions of biobeads along the Sussex coastline, which washed up on local beaches including Camber Sands.
A Southern Water spokesperson said: “Pollution is unacceptable, and we act quickly whenever issues arise, working transparently with the Environment Agency.”
The data only covered water companies in England, as water companies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are monitored by separate regulators.
Almost 100 criminal investigations launched
A record number of 96 criminal investigations were launched by the EA in 2025/26 in response to the widespread rule-breaking.
Prosecutions have recently resulted in large fines for water companies. In February, Yorkshire Water was fined over £700,000 after a burst pipe led to three sewage spills.
Ministers have changed the rules so that water company bosses can be sent to jail for environmental breaches, but this is yet to happen.
It comes after the EA confirmed last week that it had hit its target of carrying out 10,000 inspections of water company assets in 2025/26, which is more than double the previous year.
The regulator’s funding has been cut dramatically over the past 15 years and it has been heavily criticised for its role in allowing water companies to dump waste illegally.
The i Paper has been calling on the Government to increase the EA’s funding so that it can properly enforce the law.
Reynolds said the surge in inspections means “poor performing water companies have nowhere to hide”.
“I want to thank The i Paper for its campaign to improve the nation’s waterways and hold polluting water companies to account,” she said.
Erica Popplewell, Head of Engagement at River Action, said the EA’s crackdown was “welcome”.
“However, this action must match the scale of the crisis. With more than 4,400 permit breaches recorded in 2025, including 18 Category 1 incidents causing serious environmental harm, it is clear that widespread pollution is still happening on an unacceptable scale.”
A spokesperson for Water UK, which represents the industry, said: “It is right that water companies are investigated and held to account when things go wrong. Many of these permit breaches were for infringements such as problems with signage or access, with no harm caused to the environment. Issues like these are quickly remedied by water companies with no further action taken by the Environment Agency.
“Water companies are investing the largest amount of money ever spent on the natural environment to help support economic growth, build more homes, secure our water supplies and end sewage entering our rivers and seas.”
