Water bill boost for low earners

Some water charges have soared

The Scottish Executive has announced plans to cushion the effects of steep rises in water charges for poorer households.

In a statement to parliament, Environment Minister Sam Galbraith said £24m of new money would be set aside over the next three years.

This will be used to cap increases in water charges for households already receiving council tax benefit.

The new rules will apply to at least 100,000 households, mostly in the north of Scotland, where water rates went up last year by 43%.

Sam Galbraith: Parliamentary statement

Prices in the North of Scotland Water Authority area rose by 45% for householders, compared with 15% increases in Scotland's other two water authority areas.

A typical resident in northern Scotland received a £299.58 bill for 2000 - almost £90 more than the previous year.

The company defended its position by arguing that it covered a huge area which needed major investment to improve water quality and sewage disposal arrangements.

It plans to plough in some £500m on upgrades over the next six years.

And in the country as a whole £1.8bn worth of improvements are required to bring the system up to speed.

'Massive investment'

Mr Galbraith's proposals should mean that householders who receive council tax rebates will not have to pay more than £200 per year.

That will reduce bills for 75,000 householders in the north of Scotland and a further 25,000 elsewhere in Scotland.

The minister told MSPs: "The Scottish Executive is determined to bring the benefits of better quality drinking water, a cleaner, safer environment and a more reliable service to all Scots.

Water companies say they are meeting European standards

"That has required massive investment and therefore an increase in water and sewerage charges."

He added: "Despite that, Scottish water charges still compare well with those elsewhere in the UK.

"And crucially, charges are linked to council tax bands so that those living in low banded properties pay less than those in higher banded properties.

"On top of that, single adult households, including single pensioners and single parents, receive a 25% rebate on their charges."

"These arrangements already provide significant assistance to many lower income households in dealing with recent increases.

'Better late than never'

"However, they offer less help to those on lower incomes living in higher banded properties and in the area served by North of Scotland Water, where the increase in charges has been the greatest."

The Scottish National Party responded to the news by saying that the help was better late than never.

However, it added that the announcement does not help to tackle the long term problems of the industry.

The Conservative Party expressed concerns about the long-term and what would happen after finance for the three-year rebate plan had ended.