5. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reports that Scottish Water plans to increase charges by 29 per cent over three years. (S6F-02770)

Let me start by clarifying the arrangements for setting water charges. They are set out in the Water Industry (Scotland) Act 2002, and decisions on charges are rightly a matter for the board of Scottish Water, which will announce its charges for 2024-25 shortly.

Charges for future years have not yet been agreed. They will be set annually by Scottish Water’s board, with approval from the independent economic regulator, in line with the price cap across the 2021-27 period. In 2023-24, the average charge in England and Wales is 10 per cent higher than in Scotland, at £448 compared with a charge in Scotland of £408.

I am not interested in what is going on in England and Wales—[

Interruption

.]

The Presiding Officer:

Let us hear Mr Simpson.

Scottish Water is reported to want to increase Bills by 8.8 per cent in 2024-25 and then do the same every year until 2026-27. That might be all right for its new chief executive, Alex Plant, who can well afford it on his £295,000-a-year salary, but it is not okay for normal people who are struggling to pay their bills.

Water bills are paid through our council tax. The First Minister has committed to freeze council tax. Is he not prepared to do the same with water charges?

The First Minister:

The brass neck of a Conservative talking about the impact on people’s household Bills is quite something to witness.

Let me talk about Scotland and Scottish Water. I have already said that the charges have not been announced but will be announced shortly. They will be reviewed and announced annually.

With Scottish Water, we end up getting better levels of service in comparison to England and Wales. We get lower water charges in Scotland than in England. We get a publicly owned water company, in which every penny of profit is reinvested in the public service, unlike in England, where the member’s party is in charge and shareholders get millions in dividends. We get water quality at 87 per cent good or at a high level, as assessed by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

As on so many issues, the Conservative United Kingdom Government would do far better to look at how we run Scottish Water and our public services for the good of the people of Scotland. It seems that the UK Government runs its services into the ground for the profit of shareholders, unlike Scottish Water, which is publicly owned.