00:00This is a golden opportunity to clean up our rivers and seas, to deliver better value for
00:08Welsh bill payers and to build a water system that's accountable, transparent and designed
00:14in Wales for Wales. It's about creating a joined up approach that puts people, nature
00:21and future generations at the very heart of decision making.
00:26Here in Wales we're particularly proud of our water. We all know that we've got beautiful
00:30rivers, lakes, reservoirs and coastal areas. We're hearing more and more horror stories
00:34about pollution in our waterways. The Welsh Government, alongside the UK Government, commissioned
00:39a report into how water and water companies were being regulated in the country. And alongside
00:44a number of other findings, it recommended that Wales had its own independent water regulator
00:49focused specifically on Wales. The Welsh Government say that it's a massive opportunity to help
00:54protect Welsh people's interests in our water.
00:57One of the key recommendations from the Commission is to create a new economic regulator for water
01:04in Wales. I can confirm that we will take this forward and we will work closely with the UK
01:11Government to enable this. Further, I believe that a dedicated stand-alone regulator incorporating
01:20water system planning functions is the best way to serve Wales' long-term interests.
01:26It's a long-term plan that many see as a way of properly shoring up and protecting our water,
01:31keeping businesses to account and making sure that decisions made, anything from pollution to the cost
01:36of our bills, is made in our best interests. Now, as members will know, in Wales we have a
01:42legislative foundation that empowers us to think long-term, act collaboratively and deliver holistically.
01:50A new regulatory system for water must make the most of that. We will move towards a more ethical,
01:58collaborative approach. This means embracing shared objectives where the environmental costs and the
02:06impacts of sustainable water management are considered alongside affordability of water bills.
02:13We will embed sustainability, fairness, health, equality and resilience into the very fabric
02:20of our water system. In our own constituencies, I've seen so many occasions where the quality of the
02:27water is not fit for purpose. We have seen so many issues in my own constituency last year in terms of
02:35water infrastructure. Everybody now, and certainly our constituents, are becoming well aware of how
02:42problematic this is for us. You know my view on recent responses I have made. I genuinely believe that the
02:53findings of the Water Commission should form the basis of a Water Wales Bill.
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