Thousands expected to march through London to demand cleaner water

Thousands of people are set to march through central London to demand tougher action on keeping the UK’s rivers and seas clean.

A range of groups including River Action, Greenpeace, the Wildlife Trusts and British Rowing will take to the streets for for the campaign amid a growing water quality crisis in the UK.

The March for Clean Water will see protesters meet at the Albert Embankment on Sunday before heading along the River Thames to a rally in Parliament Square.

Participants have been asked to bring a sample of the waters they love and to wear blue to form “a mass human river” on the march.

Environmental activist and singer Feargal Sharkey, TV presenter Chris Packham and adventurer Bear Grylls are among those expected to attend the event.

The campaign will call for an immediate root and branch review of the regulator Ofwat and the Environment Agency, the stricter enforcement of existing laws and regulations on water pollution and ensuring all polluting industries invest in upgrading infrastructure, reducing water wastage and leakage and helping farmers restore habitats.

The Water (Special Measures) Bill, set out by the Government in Parliament last month, will aim to give regulators powers to issue harsher penalties to water companies that damage the environment, including severe and automatic fines, blocked bonuses and even two-year prison sentences for uncooperative executives.

A Water UK spokesperson said: “The March for Clean Water is right to demand change and we support its aims. We agree that the system is not working. It is too complicated, too slow and is not delivering for people or the environment.

“No sewage spill is ever acceptable, and water companies want to invest a record £108 billion to ensure the security of our water supply in the future and end sewage entering our rivers and seas.

“Ofwat have proposed cutting this by £20 billion. As a direct result, more housing will be blocked, the recovery of our rivers will be slower, and we will fail to deal with the water shortages we know are coming.

“We cannot delay upgrading and expanding vital infrastructure any longer and need Ofwat to reconsider its approach.”