Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has carried out an impact assessment on the potential impact of sewage discharged in areas at risk of drought.

There are currently nine Environment Agency (EA) operational areas (Yorkshire, West Midlands, East Anglia, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, Thames, Wessex, East Midlands, Solent and South Downs, and Devon and Cornwall) that are experiencing prolonged dry weather, which is the early stage of drought. The EA has provided advice to water companies to reduce the potential impact of this on wastewater treatment as well as any potential use of sewage overflows, should there be any imminent heavy rainfall.