'End this filth!' Lee Anderson fumes as Labour 'fails to answer' over major promise

has blasted the over allegedly failing to answer his question about giving water companies a deadline to stop polluting UK waters with sewage.

Sewage spills into Britain's lakes, rivers, and coastal waters more than doubled in 2023, according to new figures from the Environment Agency.

Water companies reported 3.6 million hours of discharge, a sharp increase from the 1.75 million hours recorded in 2022.

Since taking office in July, the Labour government has announced a series of proposed reforms, and promised to introduce new measures to hold water companies to account.

But Lee Anderson fumed on X, alongside a video of Prime Minister's Questions, claiming that Labour failed to answer his question about the government's plans to commit to giving water companies a deadline to ending the use of storm overflows - which discharge untreated wastewater during heavy rain.

Labour responded saying they have made sure every overflow has monitoring on it to know "exactly what is coming out of it and therefore, take action against the water companies that may be responsible".

Anderson wrote on X: "Storm Overflows. The Labour Party spent the last five years banging on about sewage in our waterways.

"Today I asked them if they would put a deadline on ending this filth practice by instructing water companies to do so. Again they failed to answer."

But some rivals challenged the former Tory party deputy chairman, with one writing: "Until very recently, you were a Tory MP, Lee, please elaborate on what you achieved regarding this issue then. Thank you."

Most areas in the UK use a combined sewerage system, where rainwater and household wastewater-such as from toilets, bathrooms, and kitchens-travel through the same network of pipes.

Normally, wastewater is directed to treatment plants. However, during periods of heavy rainfall, the system can become overwhelmed, particularly when dry ground struggles to absorb large amounts of water quickly, which can cause flooding.

The system is therefore designed to overflow occasionally, and discharge excess wastewater into the sea and rivers from combined sewer overflows - but some water companies have been releasing sewage outside of times of heavy rain as a result of failing to manage their wastewater treatment plants.