‘Dirty Business’ highlights regulator conflicts

C4 launched its docudrama ‘Dirty Business@ which shines a light on the relationship between the water companies and the Environment Agency with responsibility to police the industry. Its a brilliant watch.

The real stars are Ash Smith and Peter Hammond who set out to expose the relentless dumping of sewage in their local rivers. Their allegation is that not only were the water companies breaking the law, but the enforcement officers in the Environment Agency were told to turn a blind eye by their own bosses as they were taking funding from the Utility Companies.

United Utilities has also faced criticism for dumping sewage in Windemere. Concerns were raised by the save Windemere campaign.

in 2026 in response to growing public disquiet the government announced a wide ranging reform of water regulation.

It begs the question whether there are similar conflicts in the Crummock project, a concern we continue to investigate.

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