The former chief executive of Southern Water has appeared in court charged with conspiring to defraud the public purse by preventing wastewater quality from being tested as a way to avoid fines.
Matthew Wright and six colleagues as well as the company itself relating to the alleged conspiracy which has been estimated to have saved the company at least £45 million.
They are alleged to have abused the “operator self-monitoring” scheme which was brought in by the Environment Agency in 2009. The scheme’s flaws were exposed in the Channel 4 drama Dirty Business which was broadcast earlier this year.
In effect, it allows water companies to mark their own homework by testing and reporting their own waste quality results at wastewater treatment works, sometimes known as sewage works.
The water companies share their results with their regulators, the Environment Agency and Ofwat, and face penalties if they do not meet the terms of their permits to discharge wastewater.
But if the discharge flow is inadequate so that a sample cannot be taken, it is known as a “no-flow event”. Importantly, it is not recorded as a fail.
Southern Water, its former boss and six former staff are alleged to have been involved in a scam to turn off outflows when the discharge quality was expected to fail a test.
Southern Water has been charged with dozens of offences of contravening or failing to comply with environmental permit conditions.
The seven men who have been charged with the alleged conspiracy were all granted unconditional bail. They were
- Matthew Wright, 61, of Derby Road, Haslemere, Surrey
- Philip Barker, 59, of Grove Lane, West Chiltington, West Sussex
- Clive Massey, 66, of Brandhill, Onibury, Craven Arms, near Ludlow, Shropshire
- Mark Gregory, 64, Newton Road, Southampton
- Mark Butler, 47, of London Road, Sayers Common, Hassocks
- David James, 60, of Chippers Road, Worthing
- Terry Stephens, 68, of Fontwell Mews, Cowplain, Waterlooville, Hampshire
Wright, Gregory and Butler appeared in person before District Judge Stephen Leake at Bromley Magistrates’ Court today. The other defendants appeared by video link.
After an earlier hearing related to the case, in the High Court, Wright’s lawyer said that he denied any wrongdoing and had co-operated with the investigation by the Environment Agency.
Wright was chief executive of Southern Water from 2011 to 2016.
The district judge sent the case to Maidstone Crown Court and bailed the defendants to appear there on Friday 9 October.
