1. How is the Welsh Government working to reduce daily household usage of water? OQ58731

Thank you, and, Llywydd, I'd like to pass on the apologies of Julie James for not being able to be here this afternoon.

We announced in July our strategic priorities and objectives statement. This sets a clear mandate for Ofwat to incentivise the efficient use of water resources by encouraging companies to reduce water consumption. 

Thank you, Minister. Climate science tells us we're in for longer, hotter and dryer summers with the likelihood of ever more severe water shortages. Reducing daily water consumption would not only mitigate some of the challenges we've seen and will continue to see during the summer, but can also address water poverty during the current cost-of-living crisis. For example, there are parts of Wales at the moment that are at drought levels and we're only in November. In other countries, there are already targets set for water usage, with Brussels having a target of 96 litres per person per day, and there are also tech solutions such as water-saving flushes and tap fittings that I know Welsh Water already supply to customers, and that my group, Porthcawl U3A, were very keen for me to ask you about. So, Minister, given that parts of Wales are highly likely to continue facing summer drought and as bills continue to rise, what considerations have the Welsh Government made to upping our water efficiency status and potentially introducing a target that is ambitious enough to be meaningful in a climate and cost-of-living crisis?

Well, thank you. The Member raises a really important issue. As she says, our water system is under continued stress because of man-made climate change and it is going to get worse. The messages coming out of COP last week in Egypt were quite distressing about the state of the science and the level of the severity of the threat to us. So, conserving our water and treating it as the scarce resource that it is is essential. I've welcomed the campaign by Friends of the Earth to highlight this. 

There are number of things going on. There are individual initiatives by water companies. So, Dŵr Cymru, for example, has a set of tips that it promotes, encouraging people to take small measures for people to make a difference, like taking a shower instead of a bath, not leaving the tap running when you're brushing your teeth—these, cumulatively, make a meaningful contribution. Ofwat have also challenged the water companies to reduce leakage by at least 15 per cent over the next five years and both water companies in Wales are committed to doing this.

We are working with the UK Government on proposals to introduce a water efficiency labelling scheme to label water-using products such as taps, showers, toilets and dishwashers, and this will enable consumers to compare the relative water efficiency of these appliances, as they can for gas and electricity appliances. There are no plans at the moment to introduce targets, but clearly that's something we need to keep under review, depending on how the environment continues to change.

Minister, last year, Welsh Water customers consumed the most water per person per day, compared to all other regions in England. Our daily consumption at 176 litres was significantly higher than areas such as Bristol, for example, at 161 litres per day. What discussions has the Minister had with Welsh Water about the reasons for higher usage regarding household water consumption? As we attempt to be more responsible with our natural resources, it is clear that we need to take action to address this.

Well, thank you for highlighting this important issue. The water companies do have a duty to produce water resource management plans every five years and these must adhere to the Welsh Government's principles, which provide a high-level framework for the companies to follow in developing their plans. Dŵr Cymru has a commitment to reduce the average per-capita consumption of its domestic customers to 110 litres per person per day by 2050, and it plans to do this with a combination of education and behavioural change campaigns alongside increased household metering and leakage repairs. And we are continuing to work closely with them on that and Natural Resources Wales, along with Hafren Dyfrdwy—the two companies operating in Wales.