British Labour MP and former Under-Secretary of State for Water and Flooding
The Environment Agency has declared a drought across seven English regions, affecting up to 28 million people. July is forecast to be the driest month on record, with minimal rainfall and rising heat. Ministers are accelerating investments and demanding leakage reductions as wildfires and hosepipe bans increase.
South East Water faces ongoing outages amid a heatwave, with thousands without water across Kent and Sussex. Regulators warn of pressure on resilience and investment plans, while councils pledge new scrutiny and partnerships to improve reliability. Pennon and Ofwat are central to the evolving response.
Provisional temperatures have surpassed long-standing June records across England, with 35.8C in Wigonholt and 35.7C in Charlwood, amid a Met Office red heat warning. Forecasters say figures could climb further as a heat-dome over western Europe drives extreme heat, health warnings are in place, and schools and transport are disrupted.