Political Opinion with Alison Bennett MP: Mid Sussex says no to a dry January

Happy New Year! After a turkey and mince pie-fuelled few days, I am looking forward the reset of the New Year.

However, with a hosepipe ban still in place, one thing we do not need here is a dry January - in terms of the weather at least.

A key concern for many residents, and one that will form an important part of my work this year, is our fresh water supply.

Before Christmas, reports suggested that South East Water may be preparing to lay an emergency temporary 13-kilometre overground pipeline to pump up to 30 million litres of water a day from Weir Wood Reservoir into Ardingly Reservoir.

Following the recent water crisis in Tunbridge Wells, people in Mid Sussex were understandably concerned by this news. So, I wrote to the Chief Executive of South East Water to request an urgent briefing.

As I said during a debate in Parliament before Christmas, residents expect, and deserve, confidence that the disgraceful scenes witnessed elsewhere in the region will not be repeated here.

South East Water executives agreed to meet me before Christmas, and they shared that they have fast-tracked several projects, including ones to make sure water can move more easily around the network, take pressure off existing supply, and transfer water into Mid Sussex.

Regarding the pipeline proposal, they said that this is being considered as an emergency measure and is in very early stages of consultation.

It is also worth being aware that they are assessing an alternative option to the emergency pipeline which would be a permanent underground pipeline permanently connecting Ardingly and Weir Wood Reservoirs.

I did appreciate South East Water taking the time to outline their plans. Ultimately, however, responsibility must be taken for us getting to this point.

A failure to invest adequately in our network or improve resilience has left our current systems unable to respond to the challenges posed by climate change and rising demand.

With rising bills, people must be able to live with the assurance that they have access to a clean and reliable water supply.

I will continue to fight for this for Mid Sussex residents in the year ahead.