August 11th, 2026.



With the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales declaring a drought in eight areas of England and Wales and seven others facing “prolonged dry weather”, including most of East Sussex under a hosepipe ban, the Liberal Democrats in Lewes have called out South East Water over figures recently analysed by the party which show they lost 38252.0 million litres of water due to leaks in 2024/2025. That’s the equivalent of 41.9 Olympic-sized swimming pools every day.

As a hosepipe ban continues for residents in large parts of East Sussex, James MacCleary has called on South East Water to “urgently get its house in order” by fixing the leaky infrastructure rather than simply imposing hosepipe bans on their customers.

MacCleary and his office recently launched a campaign encouraging residents to report water leaks across the area, while also asking residents to flag leaks directly with his team. The campaign has already resulted in leaks being identified and reported in Alfriston, Lewes, Newhaven, Seaford, Polegate and numerous other locations, prompting South East Water to take action to address them. Following the campaign, MacCleary has secured a meeting with South East Water’s new Chief Executive, where he will raise these issues directly and press for further action to tackle leaks across the area.

MacCleary has also been a vocal critic of the ongoing sewage scandal, which is having a devastating impact on our rivers, coastline and wider waterways.

As the climate continues to change, and heatwaves become commonplace, MacCleary has demanded the Government include measures to reduce leaks in the upcoming Water (Special Measures) Bill. With 38252.0 million litres of water (15300.8 Olympic-sized swimming pools) lost due to leaks by South East Water last year, tackling leaks would go a long way in improving the resilience of the water sector, and helping to mitigate future shortages.

South East Water’s leaks for 2024-2025 are equivalent to 114.0 litres of water per customer, per day. That’s enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool 41.9 times over. MacCleary has consistently called for better regulation of Sussex’s water industry, and this revelation from data analysed by the House of Commons Library and the Liberal Democrats has only reinforced their calls.

James MacCleary said: “South East Water have got away with their grossly negligent handling of our water infrastructure for far too long, and now these figures prove it. South East Water needs to urgently get its house in order.

“Whilst local residents in Sussex have to face a hosepipe ban, South East Water is taking them for a ride. South East Water must stop rewarding its unaccountable bosses with exorbitant bonuses and start investing in fixing its infrastructure so we can avoid this happening time after time.

“The Government must immediately replace Ofwat with a powerful new regulator, in order to hold South East Water to account for its persistent failures. Under the mutual model of ownership that we are calling for, infrastructure investment would be a priority for water companies, with bills reinvested into stopping leaks and preventing sewage dumping.”