‘Almost half’ of people won’t swim in the sea - MP condemns North Devon sewage spills

A new poll has found that almost half of Brits won’t swim in the sea, with North Devon’s MP calling it a ‘damning indictment’ on the state of the country’s seas following recent sewage spills.

The poll, commissioned by the Liberal democrats, found that nearly half of those surveyed (44%) would never swim in the sea during the summer.

North Devon MP Ian Roome has met with South West Water several times to raise these issues and has called on the Government to do more to protect our ‘invaluable’ waterways.

READ NEXT: South West Water to pay £24m after spills onto the region’s coast and rivers

He says the new regulator promised after Ofwat was scrapped has to be established as soon as possible and given the powers it needs to hold water companies accountable for sewage dumping.

It comes after a warning issued by the Environment Agency on July 21 to avoid bathing at Woolacombe and Combesgate beaches in North Devon after a burst pipe caused raw sewage to leak into nearby waters.

The online resource www.sewagemap.co.uk also shows there was a five hour and 15 minutes discharge at Combesgate on June 12 this year.

The Liberal Democrats say South West Water was responsible for 84 storm overflows in North Devon in 2024, resulting in 3,683 sewage spills and a total spill duration of 37,318 hours. The party said overflows affected some of the popular swimming locations and beaches, including Croyde, Woolacombe and Hele Bay in Ilfracombe, among others.

Mr Roome said: “Here in North Devon, where beaches like Woolacombe are some of the finest in the country, this polling is a damning indictment. What use is a beautiful beach if you can’t safely swim in the sea?

“I am saddened but not surprised by these findings. Serially-polluting water companies have been let off the hook for too long. The Government has got to act more quickly and with greater ambition if they are to reverse the damage caused by the former Conservative government’s negligence.

“Labour needs to get a grip on this coastline crisis. They can start by getting a new water regulator set up as soon as possible, with the powers it needs to truly hold water companies accountable.

“Tougher fines, levied swiftly, are needed to hold sewage dumpers criminally responsible for their mistreatment of our seas and rivers.”

READ NEXT: Will scrapping of water watchdog for ‘tougher’ regulator be a boost to North Devon’s beaches?

The poll was carried out by Savanta, with 2,128 UK adults aged 18-plus interviewed online between July 25-28. It also found that 19% of respondents said even if the Government hit its target of halving sewage spills by 2030, they would actually be less likely to swim in the sea and 45% of respondents said they would not swim in the sea at all.