Environment Food and Rural Affairs written question – answered at on 28 January 2013.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the benefits and costs to residents of Reading East constituency of the Thames Tideway Tunnel project; and if he will make a statement.
The cost-benefit analysis for the Thames tideway tunnel was published in November 2011 and it does not address individual parliamentary constituencies. Since water industry privatisation in 1989, it has been standard practice for the costs of capital investment by licensed undertakers to be spread across all their customers as the fairest way to apportion costs. The large number of customers of Thames Water's sewerage services in London has enabled the customer bill impact of investments in sewerage infrastructure outside London to be kept down to the benefit of customers outside London, particularly those in rural and smaller urban areas. This has helped to ensure that Thames Water sewerage bills are currently the cheapest in England. For example, Reading residents have benefitted from this approach as the £80 million new Reading sewage treatment works has been paid for by all Thames Water customers, including those in London who derive no benefit from it.
Yes3 people think so
No3 people think not
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