"Southern Water fined £7m after illegally dumping sewage off Kent coast", 17 July 2026

Southern Water has been fined more than £7m after illegally dumping sewage off the Kent coast between 2019 and 2021...

Nine counts related to the incidents of untreated sewage dumped off the Kent coast, while three counts were over the failure to notify authorities of the discharges as soon as practicable and within 24 hours of a warning. This is a condition of the environmental permit...

A Southern Water spokesperson said the company was “deeply sorry”, adding: “Pollution incidents like these are unacceptable, and we fully recognise the impact they can have on the environment and the communities we serve.

“These events took place more than five years ago – since then we’ve made significant changes. Under a new leadership team, backed by new shareholders, we’ve radically addressed our culture, governance and operations.”

The company said its responsibility now was to “continue delivering the improvements that will make a meaningful difference for our customers and the environment”.