A Tory minister has claimed Boris Johnson is the first PM ever to tackle sewage spills - despite ordering MPs to vote against a “duty” to stop it.
Thousands were angry after heavy rain last week led to dozens of popular coastal spots having sewage pumped into their waters.
The stink grew when people re-shared details of a Commons vote on the issue from October 2021. Many shared Twitter messages shaming their local MP, saying they “voted to allow raw sewage to be dumped in our rivers”.
The row started when Peers amended the Environment Bill to include a “duty” on water firms to take “reasonable steps to ensure untreated sewage is not discharged” from storm pipes.
Mr Johnson ordered MPs to vote to strip out seven crucial lines - including that “duty” not to discharge sewage.
Instead, the Tories voted through a lesser move to ensure “progressive reduction in the adverse impact of discharges.”
And this week the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it is launching what it calls the "largest infrastructure programme in water company history to crack down on sewage spills and end pollution."
It will be £56 billion capital investment over 25 years.
The plan was branded "fiction" and a "cruel joke" by opponents in Parliament.
Under the proposals, water companies will have to achieve targets, so discharges only happen when there is unusually heavy rain and when there is no immediate adverse impact to the local environment.
Today, Environment Secretary George Eustice claimed the Government is the first to "actually tackle" the problem of sewage spills.
He insisted storm overflows are "not a new challenge", as they are "a legacy of the Victorian sewage infrastructure".
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "There are around 15,000 of these storm overflows and, as I said, they are a legacy of the Victorian infrastructure we had.
"You could argue that governments down the decades should have prioritised this, but this Government - with me as Secretary of State, and Boris Johnson as Prime Minister - is the first government to actually tackle this problem."
Former Environment Agency water lead Professor Ian Barker said the new plan indicates a lack of "joined-up" thinking.
Prof Barker, now managing director at Water Policy International, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "What the Government's plan indicates is a lack of joined-up policy thinking across Government.
"Because if you think about where all this surface water comes from, much of it is the paved areas in urban areas as a result of urban expansion, and much of it comes from the road network as well.
"What it really needs is a joined-up policy approach across both Defra - the author of this document - but also Department (for) Transport and (Department for) Levelling Up, Housing and Communities so that we have a much more joined-up approach to surface water management.
"And that'll have a benefit not only in terms of reducing these sewer overflows, but also making our towns and cities more resilient to urban flooding."
