Written question WQ87018

The Welsh Government acknowledges the distress and inconvenience experienced by households and businesses by the disruption to their water supplies and has been in close contact with Dŵr Cymru during this period to help ensure an effective and swift response.

Dŵr Cymru has been working around the clock to repair the pipes. Dŵr Cymru have identified priority and vulnerable customers, which include care homes, and have provided them with bottles or tanks of water. They have been providing regular updates to communities affected and elected officials, and more widely via social media, text and telephone.

For other customers, a compensation package has been put in place. Households without a water supply for 12 hours or more will automatically receive a payment of £70 per day without needing to apply. Dŵr Cymru will also contact affected business customers who can apply for losses incurred by the loss of supply.

The Welsh Government recognises that robust management of water companies’ assets is a crucial element in achieving resilience in the water and wastewater sector. “Asset health” was identified as a key priority therefore in our Strategic Priorities and Objectives Statement for Ofwat, announced by the Minister for Climate Change last July. Looking ahead, we expect our water companies to demonstrate a clear understanding of the health of their assets and how this impacts overall resilience of infrastructure.

Dŵr Cymru will undertake a post incident review which will be shared with the Welsh Government’s Water Branch to help inform Minister’s policy decisions in relation to water infrastructure and asset management in future.