Environment minister confronted over accepting football tickets linked to water pollution company

The Independent

Minister confronted over accepting football tickets linked to water pollution companySource: Sky News

Transcript

00:00Northumbria and Water recorded 30.1 spills per overflow over the course of

00:042023. 280,000 hours and change in total. The chief executive, Heidi Mottram,

00:13received a bonus of £234,000 that year. Why did you take football

00:21tickets from the parent company? Well, I didn't. Okay. CK Hutchins Holdings

00:27owns 75% of Cheong Kong Infrastructure Holdings, the owner of Northumbria and

00:32Water, and you declared £2,000 in football tickets and hospitality.

00:36On that occasion, there was nobody from a water company that was involved in

00:41offering those tickets. There was nobody from a water company at that event.

00:46I wouldn't have known that. They weren't present. Why didn't you know? You should have known that.

00:49Well, there were no conversations about the water company during that event.

00:53So you didn't know who you were taking tickets from? Well, they're not... I didn't

00:57know that they had a relationship with a water company. That didn't arise and

01:00nobody spoke about it. Why didn't you know? Well, it had no impact whatsoever on what

01:04happened that evening or any conversations that took place. A company

01:08that, I'll quote you, Northumbria and Water recorded 30.1 spills per overflow

01:13over the course of 2023. The boss, as I said, Chief Exec, Heidi Mottram, got a

01:19massive bonus. You said that these sort of people should potentially be in the

01:24dock if they have been found to break the rules. You took £2,000 in tickets

01:29and hospitality for a football match from bosses linked to that company that

01:33polluted that water. Why should people in Northumbria think that you're fit for the dock?

01:38Well, I certainly wouldn't have known that and judge me by what I did. Why not?

01:41Judge me by what I did. No, no, that is what you did. This is what you did.

01:44You took tickets from a company that is one of the three companies that are

01:50off what say are not fit for purpose. I've introduced a bill into Parliament, it's

01:53going through Parliament now, that is going to ban the payment of bonuses.

01:55This was only last December. Ban the payment of bonuses to water bosses.

01:59You knew you were going to be in power.

02:01Overseeing illegal pollution. If I was being influenced by any kind of event like that,

02:05I would not be now taking the toughest action ever seen against water bosses

02:10for the payment of their bonuses or making them face criminal liability.

02:14The implications behind this are completely wrong. We are taking tough

02:17action against water companies to stop those abuses, to turn around the sector

02:22and make sure it works for customers and the environment in a way that we have not seen,

02:25frankly, for decades.

02:27CK Hutchins Holdings owns 75% of Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings,

02:31the owner of Northumbrian Water, who are not fit for purpose at this stage.

02:35It took my producer, Sam, five minutes to find that out.

02:38You are in charge of these businesses as far as it relates to delivering water to the UK.

02:45And you didn't know? No.

02:48What makes you think you're fit for your job?

02:50Well, judge me what I'm doing, Kay. I'm putting through Parliament now the toughest action.

02:56The implication is that I would somehow go soft on water companies.

02:59What I've actually done is bring in the toughest legislation to stop the payment of unfair bonuses,

03:05to make water bosses face criminal liability for the kind of things that they're doing.

03:09I've launched a commission today that will turn around the water sector,

03:12clean up our rivers, lakes and seas once and for all,

03:15and make sure that we have the governance and regulation that can serve customers better.

03:18With hindsight, would you take those tickets again?

03:22I probably wouldn't, but I didn't know at the time,

03:24and it hasn't influenced a single decision that I've taken.

03:26Why would you not take them again?

03:28Well, I don't think it's helpful that you're able to ask me questions like this.

03:32I didn't know. Well, it isn't. Come on, Minister.

03:35The implication, Kay, is that it somehow influences the decisions that I'm taking.

03:39So you want to influence what questions I ask you? I'm demonstrating to you that it hasn't influenced a single thing at all.

03:43I wasn't aware there was any relationship with a water company.

03:45Water wasn't discussed even for one second at that event.

03:49I'm doing the best by the public, the things that we said we'd do in the general election.

03:53My intention is to reset a failing water sector

03:56so it serves customers and the environment in a way it hasn't done for decades.

04:00To you, Research Minister.

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