SOUTHERN WATER is in talks to import water from fjords in Norway — in the event of a severe drought.
The shock plan to bring in supplies from more than 1,000 miles away comes just a month after the firm’s boss Lawrence Gosden complained there was “too much rain”.
The company, which serves 4.7 million households in Sussex, Kent, and the Isle of Wight, is in conversations with a Norwegian firm to ship in 45million litres of water a day into Hampshire.
It stressed it was a “last resort option” amid concerns there would be shortfall while construction on a new reservoir takes place.
The cost would end up being added to customer bills.
It is likely to outrage households further as the average Southern Water bill is already expected to rise from £420 by 43 per cent to £603 by 2030, according to recent Ofwat documents.
The firm is majority owned by MacQuarie. The Australian investor previously came underfire for saddling Thames Water, which it owned between 2006 and 2017, with billions of pounds of debt so it could afford bumper dividends.
Southern Water imposed a hosepipe ban in August 2022, the first such for a decade, after a heatwave caused the driest July since 1935.
It was also ranked as one of the worst for sewage spills, pumping 317,285 hours of sewage from overflows in 2023, the Environment Agency found.
The Norwegian firm that it would use is Extreme Drought Resilience Service.
Its website says it offers to supply “those required to insure against critical shortages to their own water resources due to major outages or extreme drought”.
Tim McMahon, Southern’s managing director for water, said importation would be a “last minute contingency measure”.
He said it would only be used in the event of a drought in the early 2030s and “something considerably worse than the drought of 1976”.
Mike Keil, of the Consumer Council for Water, said that while customers want the security of having a reliable service, that should still come at a good value.
He said: “Water resources in the south of England are under intense pressure and water companies need to have a robust long-term plan, but that must not come at an unreasonable cost to customers or the environment.”
Meanwhile, the owner of South West Water yesterday said it had taken a £16million hit from parasite-contaminated water in parts of Devon.
Around 17,000 households in the town of Brixham had to boil their water for eight weeks because of the diarrhoea-causing bug that was in the supplies.
Pennon had to flush the network and provide bottles of water to affected customers.
It has also said it is paying £3.5million in compensation.
THE owner of All Bar One and Toby Carvery has blamed rioting in city centres for a summer sales slump.
Mitchells & Butler said sales growth slowed from 6.1 per cent in the second quarter to 2.5 per cent in the latest quarter.
Phil Urban, boss of the pub group, which also runs Harvester and Miller & Carter, partly blamed it on “an unseasonally cool summer and disruption caused by riots in city centres”.
The unrest was sparked by the stabbing of three girls in Southport, Merseyside, in July.
AN ENTREPRENEUR who set up her own lingerie company from her living room has cashed in to the tune of £45.7million.
Sarah Tremellen, 58, launched Bravissimo in 1995 after finding a dearth of big-busted bra options when she was a size 34G during a pregnancy.
She previously said: “You don’t have to have big boobs to work here, but it helps.”
Almost three decades after setting up the firm she and her husband, Mike, have struck a deal to sell to Wacoal Europe, which also owns the bra brands Freya and Fantasie.
The Warwickshire-based firm, which started out with mail order, sells lingerie and swimwear up to L cups online and from 25 stores across the UK.
Mrs Tremellen said. “I have loved creating and growing Bravissimo. It has been an absolute privilege to be able to bring a range of bigger cup size lingerie and swimwear to so many wonderful women.”
AMAZON claims it is one of the top ten biggest payers of business rates in the UK.
It comes ahead of Government reforms set to level the playing field between online and high street shops. The online giant said it made a total tax contribution of £4.3billion, including PAYE contributions by 75,000 workers.
Its own tax bill came in at £932million. The disclosure comes a month before the Budget, with speculation the Treasury could raise the rate on logistics and warehouses, which online retailers use.
ARTIFICIAL intelligence cameras have helped keep shelves at Morrisons stocked and boost sales, the store’s chief said yesterday.
The grocer reported a 2.9 per cent rise in sales in the third quarter, which boss Rami Baitiéh said was helped by cameras monitoring stock and reordering when needed.
The supermarket confirmed it had struck a £331million ground rent deal on 76 shops to cut its debtpile from its £7billion takeover.
STRICTLY Come Dancing has returned to our screens for its 20th anniversary.
If you have the bug for all things swing, samba and salsa, why not try the moves yourself.
Here’s how to keep dancing on a budget . . .
SILVER SWANS: The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) offers free online ballet classes targeted at older learners from around the age of 55, though there is no strict age limit.
There are also in-person Silver Swan lessons across the UK, some of which are free or low-cost.
Take part and find out more at royalacademyofdance.org.
FREE ZUMBA: Get moving with high-energy Zumba Latin dance classes.
If you are a member of a gym, check if it is part of regular schedules you can access.
Or sign up for a seven-day free trial of the Zumba Dance Fitness Workout app.
Set a reminder to cancel after the promo period or you will be charged.
CHEER FROM THE SIDES: Strictly is mostly filmed with a live audience at Elstree Film Studios in Hertfordshire.
The public can soak up the atmosphere with free tickets allocated at random.
The majority for 2024 have gone, but tickets for the Christmas Special could soon be released.
Sign up to the mailing list at bbc.co.uk/showsandtours.
TICKETS FOR A TENNER: Sadler’s Wells runs dance productions from flamenco to hip-hop and everything in between at venues across London.
If you are between 16 and 30, you can get a free Barclays Dance Pass, which unlocks cut-price £10 tickets across Sadler’s Wells venues.
Sign up at sadlerswells.com.
TEA DANCES: Some local authorities run free or low-cost tea dances for older residents.
Contact your local council to find out more.
Or many of the over 120 local Age UKs across the country hold dance classes that vary from line dancing to ballet.
All are low cost, if not free.
Ask at your local branch or call 0800 678 1602.
BAT those lashes with a Benefit mascara trio, which is now on offer for £16.20 at lookfantastic.com, down from £27.
SAVE: £10.80
MIX up a tasty refreshment with Robinsons ginger and orange fruit cordial, £3, at Sainsbury’s.
ASDA has partnered with influencer Erica Davies to create a capsule clothing collection for autumn.
Prices start from £9 and include this leopard-print cardigan, in stores now.
GET salon-style locks with Dyson’s limited-edition pink supersonic hair dryer, £329.99, from John Lewis.
Or bag a serious saving with Mark Hill’s Pick ’n’ Mix Flexi Air styler £169.99, from Boots.
SAVE: £160
RELIVE classic blockbusters including Twister and Despicable Me 4 in immersive 4DX at Cineworld for just £5 a ticket until October 3.
Find your nearest venue at cineworld.co.uk.
FILL your home with a delicious seasonal scent from this pumpkin ceramic candle, down from £8 to £5.60 at Dunelm.
SAVE: £2.40
BAG yourself two twister wraps and two signature fries from KFC for £10 when ordering for delivery through its app.
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