Mr. Jerry Grant:

We are very well aware of the reality of combined sewers in old towns, particularly town centres. Up to the 1970s, pretty much all sewers were combined. Any sewer that contains foul sewage will become our responsibility. Separate storm sewers will remain the responsibility of local authorities. There are many difficulties associated with combined sewers, both in the context of the load on treatment plants and pumping stations and in respect of the overflow to rivers and streams during periods of rainfall. These are creating compliance difficulties for us with the EPA. Part of our responsibility will be to consider how we can control this and, where possible, separate storm water. We will do this in conjunction with local authorities. As part of our capital investment programme, we will be seeking to fund the separation of storm water from place to place. Local authority staff deal with both storm sewers and combined sewers. We are covering the cost in the case of combined sewers.