PROPOSED WATER BILL

That this House believes that over-abstraction of water leads to problems for the environment and consumers; notes with concern that most abstraction licences in England and Wales date back to the Water Resources Act 1963 and have little regard for their environmental impact; believes that legislation is needed now to improve water policy and management in relation to abstraction; notes that the Water Bill has been ready in draft for over a year; and calls on the Government to include the Water Bill in its programme of legislation for the next session of Parliament.