Water bosses in England and Wales could face up to two years in prison for covering up sewage dumping under new legislation proposed by the Labour government.

Currently, CEOs of water companies can only be fined for failing to comply with investigations by the Environment Agency (EA) and the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI).

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) plans to tighten these regulations and impose a two-year maximum sentence for non-compliance.

Additionally, new laws would make water companies responsible for covering the EA and DWI's enforcement costs.

The legislation will also give regulators the power to ban bonuses for CEOs who fail to meet environmental and consumer standards.

Notably, last year, Liv Garfield of Severn Trent received a £584,000 bonus despite a £2 million fine for sewage dumping.

The environment secretary, Steve Reed, emphasized that this bill is part of broader reforms to fix the water system.

However, campaigners and experts argue that the measures do not go far enough and advocate for a comprehensive review of the entire system.

For example, Feargal Sharkey plans a protest on 26 October to demand clean rivers and stronger action.