Rishi Sunak has been condemned after the number of sewage spills in England’s rivers and seas more than doubled.
According to the Environment Agency, there were 3.6 million hours of spills in 2023, compared to 1.75 million in 2022.
Water UK, the industry body for sewerage companies, blamed heavy rainfall for the problem.
But campaigners and opposition parties accused the Tory government of failing to get to grips with the problem.
And they called on ministers to block the bonuses of water company bosses until it is solved.
Steve Reed, Labour’s shadow environment secretary, said: “The Conservatives’ are too weak to get tough with polluting water companies.
“The evidence is clear. We don’t need the dither and delay of a consultation, we need immediate action.
“That is why Labour will put the water companies under tough special measures.
“We will strengthen regulation so law-breaking water bosses face criminal charges, and give the regulator new powers to block the payment of bonuses until water bosses have cleaned up their filth.”
Lib Dem leader Ed Davey called on Sunak to declare a “national environmental emergency”.
“Rishi Sunak and the Conservative Party have failed to listen and as a result sewage spills are increasing, our precious countryside is being destroyed and swimmers are falling sick,” he said.
“It is time for this Conservative government to finally deal with this disgraceful situation and declare a national environmental emergency. That must include convening an urgent Sage meeting to look into the impact of sewage spills on people’s health.
“Only by treating the sewage scandal with the urgency it demands can we save our rivers and beaches for future generations to enjoy.”
Doug Parr, Greenpeace’s policy director, said the “failing government and water companies” have no “shame”.
“We need a block on all water company dividends and bonuses until we see real improvements, and we need it now, while we still have some river ecosystems to protect,” he said.
Water minister Robbie Moore said: “I have been clear that sewage pollution in our waters is unacceptable, which is why in just the last few months we announced a consultation to ban water bosses’ bonuses when criminal breaches have occurred, quadrupled company inspections next year, fast-tracked £180m investment to cut spills, launched a whistleblowing portal for water company workers to report breaches, and will soon set out our plans to ban wet wipes containing plastic.
“We demanded that 100% of overflows were monitored by the end of last year as part of our drive to improve transparency.
“Today’s data shows water companies must go further and faster to tackle storm overflows and clean up our precious waterways. We will be ensuring the Environment Agency closely scrutinise these findings and take enforcement action where necessary.”
