Minister confronted over accepting football tickets linked to water pollution companySource: Sky News
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00:00Northumbria and Water recorded 30.1 spills per overflow over the course of
00:042023. 280,000 hours and change in total. The chief executive, Heidi Mottram,
00:13received a bonus of £234,000 that year. Why did you take football
00:21tickets from the parent company? Well, I didn't. Okay. CK Hutchins Holdings
00:27owns 75% of Cheong Kong Infrastructure Holdings, the owner of Northumbria and
00:32Water, and you declared £2,000 in football tickets and hospitality.
00:36On that occasion, there was nobody from a water company that was involved in
00:41offering those tickets. There was nobody from a water company at that event.
00:46I wouldn't have known that. They weren't present. Why didn't you know? You should have known that.
00:49Well, there were no conversations about the water company during that event.
00:53So you didn't know who you were taking tickets from? Well, they're not... I didn't
00:57know that they had a relationship with a water company. That didn't arise and
01:00nobody spoke about it. Why didn't you know? Well, it had no impact whatsoever on what
01:04happened that evening or any conversations that took place. A company
01:08that, I'll quote you, Northumbria and Water recorded 30.1 spills per overflow
01:13over the course of 2023. The boss, as I said, Chief Exec, Heidi Mottram, got a
01:19massive bonus. You said that these sort of people should potentially be in the
01:24dock if they have been found to break the rules. You took £2,000 in tickets
01:29and hospitality for a football match from bosses linked to that company that
01:33polluted that water. Why should people in Northumbria think that you're fit for the dock?
01:38Well, I certainly wouldn't have known that and judge me by what I did. Why not?
01:41Judge me by what I did. No, no, that is what you did. This is what you did.
01:44You took tickets from a company that is one of the three companies that are
01:50off what say are not fit for purpose. I've introduced a bill into Parliament, it's
01:53going through Parliament now, that is going to ban the payment of bonuses.
01:55This was only last December. Ban the payment of bonuses to water bosses.
01:59You knew you were going to be in power.
02:01Overseeing illegal pollution. If I was being influenced by any kind of event like that,
02:05I would not be now taking the toughest action ever seen against water bosses
02:10for the payment of their bonuses or making them face criminal liability.
02:14The implications behind this are completely wrong. We are taking tough
02:17action against water companies to stop those abuses, to turn around the sector
02:22and make sure it works for customers and the environment in a way that we have not seen,
02:25frankly, for decades.
02:27CK Hutchins Holdings owns 75% of Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings,
02:31the owner of Northumbrian Water, who are not fit for purpose at this stage.
02:35It took my producer, Sam, five minutes to find that out.
02:38You are in charge of these businesses as far as it relates to delivering water to the UK.
02:45And you didn't know? No.
02:48What makes you think you're fit for your job?
02:50Well, judge me what I'm doing, Kay. I'm putting through Parliament now the toughest action.
02:56The implication is that I would somehow go soft on water companies.
02:59What I've actually done is bring in the toughest legislation to stop the payment of unfair bonuses,
03:05to make water bosses face criminal liability for the kind of things that they're doing.
03:09I've launched a commission today that will turn around the water sector,
03:12clean up our rivers, lakes and seas once and for all,
03:15and make sure that we have the governance and regulation that can serve customers better.
03:18With hindsight, would you take those tickets again?
03:22I probably wouldn't, but I didn't know at the time,
03:24and it hasn't influenced a single decision that I've taken.
03:26Why would you not take them again?
03:28Well, I don't think it's helpful that you're able to ask me questions like this.
03:32I didn't know. Well, it isn't. Come on, Minister.
03:35The implication, Kay, is that it somehow influences the decisions that I'm taking.
03:39So you want to influence what questions I ask you? I'm demonstrating to you that it hasn't influenced a single thing at all.
03:43I wasn't aware there was any relationship with a water company.
03:45Water wasn't discussed even for one second at that event.
03:49I'm doing the best by the public, the things that we said we'd do in the general election.
03:53My intention is to reset a failing water sector
03:56so it serves customers and the environment in a way it hasn't done for decades.
04:00To you, Research Minister.