‘People have had enough of paying high water bills’
David Prince and Plymouth Live readers
16:00, 11 Oct 2026
Campaigners in Newquay as part of a ‘National Day of Action on Water Quality’ in 2022 to protest against South West Water and demand they end sewage pollution(Image: Greg Martin / Cornwall Live)
Plymouth readers have voiced their frustration after South West Water was handed a six-week deadline to address Plymouth’s sewage problem.
South West Water has been ordered to produce an investment plan for the Plymouth Central Waste Water Works at Cattedown within six weeks, following sewage discharges that triggered a two-day “no swim” alert at Plymouth Hoe.
The Environment Agency uncovered issues at the site on 1 October, with the warning remaining in place until 3 October. Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Luke Pollard condemned the situation, stating residents had been “paying the price” for underinvestment, and insisted any funding should come from company profits rather than increased bills.
The firm was handed a £7.8 million fine last week in connection with unlawful discharges across multiple sites.
Readers flooded the comments section, with one commentor, MehAndPff saying: “We were stood on Oreston quay watching sewage drift by. Used to paddle board off there, never again.”
Paddywac writes: “All the time, the fine costs less than the solution to stop the pollution. They will laugh all the way to the bank!”
M1785 writes: “People have had enough of paying high water bills, even with a huge fine issued last week, the cost will get passed on to us, it’s a joke. Stop paying the shareholders holders for a start. South West Water are terrible for customer service.”
Thedaftanddelirious declares: “SWW don’t care about their customers. Only making sure the shareholders, etc, get their bonuses!!”
Albertgate replies: “Obviously, or maybe not a shareholder, what would be the point of investing in SWW or any other business if you were not going to make money from the investment? Morals don’t come into the equation; that’s not the objective of being a shareholder.
While over on our Facebook page, William B comments: “The only answer here, although costly, is to renationalise all the water board companies & get rid of paying high rates to shareholders.”
Mat B adds: “A 6 week warning to publish a plan. So no change at all.”
Craig H asks: “Why were water samples not taken during the sewage discharge at Cattedown to establish the extent of the pollution and provide evidence against South West Water? Equally, why weren’t further samples taken before the no-swim warning was lifted to confirm the water was safe again? As regular sea swimmers, surely we deserve actual water-quality results rather than simply being told when it’s safe to return? If samples were taken, where are the results? If they weren’t, why not?”
South West Water said recently it was investigating the situation at its Plymouth Central Waste Water Treatment Works while working closely with the Environment Agency.
In a statement concerning the near £8million fine it received: SWW said: “These proceedings concern historic matters between 2015 and 2021 and the majority of the charges concerned the use of overflows in storm conditions. We’re investing £760 million to tackle storm overflows and have reduced spills by 17% in the last year alone, with spill duration down by 25%.
“Significant improvements have been made across the sites concerned including a new treatment process at Scarletts Well in Bodmin, upgrades at Harlyn pumping station and the replacement of pumps at Halvarras pumping station, and work in the catchment to remove surface water and illegal connections into the network.
“We apologise for what happened in the past, and we remain focused on the future as we deliver record levels of investment to achieve cleaner rivers and seas across the South West by 2040, a decade ahead of national targets.”
Do you think that South West Water are being penalised enough? Comment below or HERE to have your say.