Other stories from last week

(by Karma Loveday)

Chief medical officer Sir Chris Whitty has accepted a commission to chair the Public Health Water Taskforce promised in the Water White Paper. Defra’s director general for strategy and water David Hill told the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee in a session on ‘Work of the department and its arms length bodies’ that the taskforce is “looking at the evidence base underpinning public health in relation to water, both bathing waters and drinking water”.

The Government has confirmed it will bring water into scope of the National Security and Investment Act 2021 (Notifiable Acquisition) (Specification of Qualifying Entities) Regulations 2021 (NARs). This will make water acquisitions the subject of mandatory notification. This follows a consultation last Summer. Chief secretary to the prime minister Darren Jones said in a statement to the House that he would lay secondary legislation to make this and other changes to the NARs “in due course”. He added: “These reforms will ensure that the NARs continue to capture emerging national security risks proportionately while getting out of the way of secure investment, unlocking economic growth across the UK.” 

Water is among the sectors set to brought into the scope of the Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill, which will give the secretary of state for technology the power to direct entities regulated under the Network and Information Systems (NIS) regime to take “necessary and proportionate action in response to imminent or live threats which put UK national security at risk”. A new policy paper from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said the Bill will plug this legal gap, in light of escalating cyber attacks on the water, transport, energy, health, digital sectors. A direction would include specified actions for the regulated entity to take or refrain from taking, and a time period within which they must comply. The Bill will also contain provisions for information, monitoring and enforcement, with fines of on the table of the higher of 10% of turnover or £17m.

Anglian Water said the first section of its 320km long strategic pipeline that will carry water from  North Lincolnshire to Essex will go into operation this Spring. The 27.7km stretch between Wherstead and Great Horkesley will serve the Ipswich and Colchester area. Anglian’s community consultation for the Cambridge to Rede section of the strategic pipeline is now open, until 12 April.

The Environmental Audit Committee has given a mixed response to the Government’s response to its November report on environmental sustainability and housing growth, which assessed how the Government was balancing its housebuilding agenda with environmental targets. EAC chair Toby Perkins welcomed ministers’ commitment to Biodiversity Net Gain, but was “disappointed that the Government has rejected our recommendations to establish ecological resource hubs — a critical element of the skills challenge in planning — and to mandate whole-life carbon assessments”.