“This Third World Country We Now Live In” | Contaminated Water In Devon Causing ‘Serious’ Illness

Residents are likely to have to boil tap water for another week following the discovery of small traces of a parasite in the local water network, an MP said.
Around 16,000 households and businesses in the Brixham area of Devon have been told not to use their tap water for drinking without boiling and cooling it first.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said 22 cases of cryptosporidium, a waterborne disease caused by a microscopic parasite, had been confirmed in the fishing town.
Ben Harris-Quinney from The Bow Group: "Massive increase in population, under investment and the result is pollution of our waters."
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[@exgren]

For just £3 a month, poor dave in Devon can have fresh water and won't have to walk miles just to drink clean water.. please help or send as much as you can..thank you

[@Sharon-marie]

Worst decision ever was to privatise water

[@whocares264]

not for the rich that have cashed in...

[@nicholasr39]

This happened in 1997 in South Hertfordshire and North London, so it's not the first time and won't be the last

[@ljdasilva3139]

Welcome to the UK, the only first world country where you have to boil your drinking water. It's a cruel world.

[@maccagrabme]

First world taxes and third world services, this is pathetic.

[@chunkylover48]

Are you kidding? You can't even drink the tap water at all in most US states.

[@james970027]

​​​@@chunkylover48The US is a much larger country and in many places has a much lower taxation rate than in the UK - we specifically pay out of our backsides in this country for services we receive nothing for and that's the problem. If people paid taxes and got something for it then it wouldn't be as much of an issue but we pay taxes and the majority of the services we pay taxes for are unable to currently deliver sufficiently i.e. NHS, police, dentistry, water etc As a small country surrounded by water it shouldn't be such a challenge considering how much water companies receive and how much they have paid their shareholders to deliver clean water - up until recently for example the last substantial reservoir built was in 1991 - that's just fundamental laziness and a failure of governments and water companies over the years considering a growing population.

[@klaus1085]

​@@chunkylover48 the UK rains 300+ days a year so it shouldn't be too difficult 🤷

[@TC8787-yq7og]

The UK isn’t a first world country

[@johnnyhock]

People in Bangladesh warning family members visiting UK - NOT to drink the tap water or have ice in their drinks …..

[@williamgould2855]

nice one

[@dantownsend4246]

Wise advice.

[@terryjacob8169]

We're not going to have the water companies under control until a few of their directors enjoy some jailtime.

[@james970027]

Yep and we'll need to jail some politicians alongside them - the recent vote for example showed labour and the conservatives don't seem interested in fixing the issue which presents a large conflict of interest in my eyes considering the necessity of clean water for a society and the proven failures and neglect of water companies over the years.

[@sbaby-kg8hn]

Bang on the money

[@madplanet3351]

Third world country with world beating prices

[@oussamaalaoui9121]

Excuse me but in third world countrys we dont have contaminated water

[@davidhenryandthemysterons3220]

We pay all that money into shareholders' banks so we can drink shite water.

[@noelfleming3567]

Bottled water will go up in d shops and supermarkets big business doesn't lose

[@remyrichardson9263]

Ive used a distillor for 6 years. Tastes completely different. The money the water company ask from me via bills goes towards the electric i have to use to distill. Havent paid thames for 6 years now.

[@fionagregory9147]

Perrier water is best.

[@PerriBelcourt]

Russia has 20 percent of world clean water and minerals and oil and gas and metals in the world and China will get them thanks NATO and European Union and America and Europe and Canadian moving to Russial and China

[@Clint-kr8zm]

Not surprised everything is designed to harm us .air,food,water

[@SpookyFox1000]

God help us all ! The country has gone from fantastic and proud to foreign basket-case in 80 years !

[@fin1131]

What changed, or was imposed on us all, THE EU, THE WEF, THE WHO, UN etc

[@noelfleming3567]

U had clean water when u were in d eu it's ur own government that didn't keep a watch on these companies all water and sewage was regulated by d eu before u left 😮

[@lorrainemoynehan6791]

@@fin1131 no, this is a Brexit bonus - you own it

[@fionagregory9147]

The cows did a poo.

[@TigerBoyX15]

50 years ..but more in last 15..

[@maninst7145]

I can remember not too long ago when we as a country took pride in the fact that we could drink safely straight from the tap!!

[@sudenims5235]

I remember years ago we were told when travelling abroad never drink the water or have ice and now we have to do it in our own country. This country is going down and down hill every day.?

[@2000globetrotter]

Simple solution....Threaten to nationalise by force the entire company with no shareholder compensation unless certain minimum standards are maintained.

[@larsbjrnson3101]

They could keep on big fining them so they end up non sustainable and buy it back cheap.

[@Northside7777]

Can england get any worse. Its beyond a joke now

[@dawnatkinson7704]

This is the result of privatization

[@fin1131]

THE WEF, WHO etc

[@Tardigrades1]

@@fin1131 It’s got jack to do with either of those. It’s successive neoliberal governments of the UK.

[@TigerBoyX15]

It's Government Corruption..and Lining their Pockets..they have F over this Country ..We Own Nothing. 🌼🏹🏹

[@curtis9555]

It's really not

[@fin1131]

@@Tardigrades1 Importing the 3rd world = 3rd world diseases, like Polio making a comeback.

[@MattyGsterThe7th]

Whooping cough, bed bugs and now unsafe drinking water. This country is going backwards.

[@Theforestbandit]

Oh well more migrants and poorer water .we are a third world country for sure

[@exgren]

It's probably to make them feel at home

[@dkinetik]

live in brixham now , ive been slighty ill , bad stomach for a week and really bad fatigue .. they charge an absolute fortune to make you ill :(

[@David-rg9dt]

They’re lowering the water pressures now in my street so we don’t use as much water…..why, because there’s too many people in the country using it and also they can’t process it after we’ve used it because there’s too much of that. Country’s finished, all due to immigration.

[@abdulkhayyum2460]

.....what.....how the hell did you dot those 2 together. 71% of water system is foreign owned. This is a government issue and corrupt system. Fml not everything is to do with immigration

[@a13xdunlop]

Utter nonsense

[@cyclometre]

Water is a utility and should be handed back to public ownership, electricity too!

[@user-hq1xj6zm5o]

It's happening in Cambridge too. I've been ill for 2 months .tap water running brown intermittently .fibres coming out of tap . Cambridge water don't want to know

[@dkh7677]

My water rates bill has just increased by 17%.

[@wisewilf1314]

Don’t pay it

[@Lee.Willcox]

Google says, when I asked..... Full privatization of water supply and sanitation is an exception today, being limited to England, Chile and some cities in the United States. Almost three quarters of England's water industry is currently owned from overseas. At least 71% of shares in England's nine privatised water companies are owned by organisations from overseas including the super-rich, banks, hedge funds, foreign governments and businesses based in tax havens. Thames Water alone has paid out a total of £7.2 billion in dividends since privatisation. But who are the shareholders receiving these payouts while failings continue? Well, the answer to this question has been described as “as murky as the water in the river” Thames Water is part of a group of companies, known as the Kemble Water Group, and is owned by a consortium of institutional shareholders - mostly pension funds and sovereign wealth funds. A simplified structure, set out here, has been in place since 2006. Thames Water, along with all other water companies in England, was privatised in 1989 when Margaret Thatcher sold off the publicly-owned water and sewage industry for £7.6bn. It found that in 2022-23, England's water firms made £1.7bn in pre-tax profits. This is up 82% since 2018-19, when the same companies made £955m. Since 2018-19, water firms have made £4.2bn in pre-tax profits. I could go on, but I am giving Google a rest. Rip-Off Britain ! It is not Clown World as many say, this really is SCAM WORLD.

[@Tardigrades1]

A clued-up citizen would already know this. What’s your voting history?

[@Madpreacher2012]

What do you expect from criminal fertinty of evil people sitting up in governments around the world..

[@raystewart3648]

WATER Should be free to everyone. Let us pay for the pipes like we do for the NHS. Simple.

[@jonny401]

Yes more tax’s what a brilliant idea

[@raystewart3648]

@@jonny401 Compared to the way we deal with it now, a little extra tax would be fine with me. Do you have another way around it? If so, stop saying that tax is not a good idea and say why and how to fix it.

[@jonny401]

@@raystewart3648 the answer to government problems isn’t more tax your living in a dillusional world. We pay extortionate taxes compared to other countries and we have 3rd world level of facilities, including just letting anyone from any country into the country and housing them when we can’t accommodate our own people. Giving away billions to help Ukraine whilst we’re in trillions of debt and at the end of the day the whole world still hates us. Disgraceful government and you should be embarrassed to be so clueless

[@jonny401]

@@raystewart3648 and saying it’s fine by you is just down right snobbish and selfish. What about the poor people who live pay check to pay check. I’m sure they’d be thrilled with extra taxes for something that should be a human right to have access to clean water.

[@raystewart3648]

@@jonny401 So whats your fix? Anything? Or are you just going to keep saying how nasty my fix is.

[@John-wt8bp]

We've had a water main leaking for months in our area and the water is flooding out of it across the road. Anglian water don't seem to be bothered about as they've just left it

[@TigerBoyX15]

Government Corrupt B...All Should be in Jail .they did this to Our Country.

[@adrikhankant6170]

Privatization is what happened, there are certain things which shouldn't be driven by profit: water, health, transport, etc

[@theroyalone7588]

Blame the Illuminati and Roth Childs

[@susanmorrissey3555]

Unfortunately, in my beautiful country NZ, the same thing happens here. We have been renowned for our excellent water quality but it is all changing. Christchurch water which is the best in the country, now has nitrates in it. This is because our farmers have used chemicals for years to fertilise their land and it is now coming home to roost. It is not helped that land unsuitable for dairying on the Canterbury plains has been turned into dairy farms requiring high amounts of irrigation and fertilisers. Nitrates are seeping into our water supply from these dairy farms as well. I live in a rural area where we have been on boil water notices on and off for 20 years. Our council now adds chlorine to the water supply and boil water notices are not so common. Tap water is drinkable but the smell and taste is awful for a few days after they have added more chlorine. Councils all over our country have similar problems with no money to remedy the situation. There have been occasional outbreaks of sickness from contaminated water throughout the country due to what you are experiencing. It is a big fat no from me for privatisation of this asset. We will be worse off. We successfully stopped a Chinese company from getting consent to take billions of litres of clean drinking water each year for chinese consumption. I do applaud many farmers who are changing their farming practices for the better, albeit far too late.

[@martinleung212]

Essential services must NOT be privatised and become commercial enterprises, where providing share profits is much more important than providing proper service to users.

[@JulieMalone-oy1ll]

Every bloody establish are broken its rediculous im just about getting sick of all this

[@StarBoyyX]

Foreign run equals foreign standards …

[@everythingerina9379]

Foreign run in Devon?

[@lorrainemoynehan6791]

strangely I think our water is now a lower standard than almost every country in the EU I for one would quite happily have Norwegian standards I think Thames waters largest share holder is a Canadian pension company. They bought our water to pay their pensions, there is no way they won't take their dividends. Yet another tory own goal

[@mikehunt4265]

​@@everythingerina9379yes a majority of England's water companies are privately owned and a majority of those shareholders are foreign businesses interests, just Google it

[@klaus1085]

​@@lorrainemoynehan6791blah blah blah, just vote harder, blah blah blah 🐑🐑🐑🐑 country is being run into the ground and pillaged by foreigners

[@dantownsend4246]

UK government set the low standards and almost no monitoring of safety standards . Thank god you broke the chains of EU tyranny

[@BrokenHill56]

Welcome to Tory Britain

[@robertjames4908]

Labour is no better. In fact Tony Blair's lot were worse....

[@klaus1085]

"Just vote harder" 🐑😵‍💫😵‍💫

[@AM-gy5xg]

M Thatcher has a lot to answer for.

[@AM-gy5xg]

Thatcher privatised water they had 0 debt when privatised now they have huge debt mountains.

[@markjohnson188]

Free Market Enterprise is the cornerstone of our wealth creation. Which is good. If it goes unregulated it can turn into a disaster for all but the few that profit from it.

[@Alex-ng6wx]

Ive never trusted tap water anyway

[@dazzleawakening]

Me too ✋️

[@kkhan1823]

The saying goes , what goes around comes around. Taste of your own medicine 💊 😋. If you encourage corruption in other countries then it means you are corrupt. Simple. 😊😊😊😊

[@klaus1085]

Go home Sanjeev, nobody wants you here

[@matthewtrigg7432]

Things are really going down hill with this country.

[@klaus1085]

Import third world...

[@johnnyhock]

The Ganges in India is cleaner than Lake Windermere…..

[@noelfleming3567]

It's a shame lake windermere is being destroyed a beautiful area

[@abdulkhayyum2460]

I know this is a joke.....but ganges is on another level of contaminated....

[@dantownsend4246]

@@abdulkhayyum2460still there maybe a market for Indian tourists

[@abdulkhayyum2460]

@dantownsend4246 because the Indian's mark it for tourism. Who even cares about a lake other than the locals...

[@daveanderson3805]

It might be easier to list something that still works in this crxp hole country. Everything is broken, nothing works. God, I hate this country.

[@rice4550]

Appropriate the water companies and give not a penny to them in compensation

[@Vince_Paul]

It was so nice of the last labour Blair government to sell the water off for £700m to these pointless companies. The same companies that have force water meters so they can over charge people. This company has just paid shareholders £122m yet it is only offering £15 compensation to those affected. How about this fine the water company £250m, pay compensation to those affected at £50 per day, repairs to be done by a totally different company, an give them a final warning that if anything happens again your finished in supplying water in the uk. These companies have done nothing in upgrading the water supply in the uk, it is worse than when they toke over. Yet they over charge people and pay out for shareholders year on year. Time the government got a back bone and fined them year on year or just toke back control of the water in the uk. An nationalisation would work out cheap for the public, privatisation has failed yet again. Thank you labour for selling it off without letting the public having a say. An why wasn’t the people given the choice of what water company they want, like with the energy market.

[@lorrainemoynehan6791]

Thames Water, along with all other water companies in England, was privatised in 1989 when Margaret Thatcher sold off the publicly-owned water and sewage industry for £7.6bn That is the root cause

[@allislove9890]

THATCHER was the maniac pirate privateer

[@Vince_Paul]

@@allislove9890 lol name things Thatcher privatised? As that is what they want you to believe. I’ll start what Blair privatised, parts of the nhs, Royal Mail, energy both gas & electric (with the promise it would be cheaper, only ever gone up year on year), water, school dinners (as he gave education authorities the right to sub contract out). Gave away the millennium doom for £1. The remaining shares government owned in the steal industry, now 100% foreign owned, North Sea oil & gas. Also moved storage of gas from the uk to Europe because the eu promised him a high up job after being pm, now costs us double for storage. These are just some of the damage labour under Blair & brown did.

[@Lofzoovd]

Sewage leakes into water wow Thames water company throwing sewage in the river thames 😂😂 We are the third world country now

[@Ad-lk3ow]

I don’t pretend to have a clue about this but logically why have they given private overseas. Company/companies control of our water supply?

[@user-ij6ek7cb6w]

Stop the sewage spills

[@hatefuleightyseven2962]

For years people have called me a snob for only drinking bottled water. Now I'm feeling pretty smug.

[@mikehunt4265]

What makes you think that is any better? It's just another private company

[@hatefuleightyseven2962]

@@mikehunt4265 Well I haven't been violently ill lately, so that's a pretty good indicator.

[@mikehunt4265]

@@hatefuleightyseven2962 and everyone drinking the local water were fine until recently, this has happened because a company cut corners to keep profits up, if your bottled water company gets in the same position they'll probably do the same thing

[@leerobinson9969]

Why doesn't the local council just say it's not safe to drink

[@aleccap5946]

And we're paying MP's their wages ?

[@UKAussie269]

Maybe, just maybe deliberately on purpose?

[@dantownsend4246]

Deliberate is something you do on purpose. But point taken

[@kelly6739]

How many MPs have big shares in the water company.

[@chrisslater7695]

The only way to privatise the water supply is to build a completely independent supply so as the providers can safety and be acceptable for there costs to the consumer and held accountable for any inconvenience caused also any sewage injection from any other water works

[@chrisslater7695]

Should be accountable and pay for the loss in clean products from any privatise company

[@Carroty_Peg]

It's because the 'Private' companies with complete monopoly are ruinous - the woman is on £4 MILLION a year - it's called a RACKET

[@AllenTaylor-lu9bu]

The simple way to return water firms to public ownership is to fine the companies every time they cannot provide potable water and every time the discharge untreated sewage into our rivers and sea. Then when they re-offend you double the fine, the utilities would be back in public ownership within 3 months, especially when you consider that according to the Financial Times, 464,056 spills were recorded in 2023 equating to over 1250 times a day!!

[@remyrichardson9263]

Cant go to another company but you can stop paying your bills until they clean up their act.

[@AntonRiley]

Hold the bastards to account …

[@peacelilly75]

My mam is from Zimbabwe she used to talk about how bad things were we jokingly started calling the UK a third world country since the last 5 years it's not funny anymore 😮

[@Dogboy73]

This is what happens when you privatise water. Profit takes precedence over infrastructure investment. Eventually the system crumbles.

[@chrishickmott7806]

Massive fine coming there way

[@Justin-yt8zv]

Hahaha not a chance c'mon

[@a13xdunlop]

Followed by another tax payer bailout

[@artistreality]

Welcome to Conservative Britain, where everything is so broken, even water has given up.

[@2727.L]

This is what socialism is actually. I thought it was well known that the tories are just new labour. Good luck voting for labour, I’d love to know what people think that will give us. But well there’s literally a gun to our head, if we don’t vote someone by a majority we’ll end up with an Islamic independent partt

[@Knighted357]

This what happens we a country has more people than it can economically manage. That’s labours fault.

[@fionagregory9147]

Why is he saying south east? Devon is south west of England.

[@user-wk4je7ew8d]

My family been very ill vomiting and diarrhea was told by doctors it's just a bug going around nothing can take just ride it out... to think we pay to keep ower waters clean this is shocking Take good care all from Cardiff ❤

[@mattanderson6672]

Absolutely agree 10000% She's right

[@Sharon-marie]

What a surprise RAW SEWAGE pumped into the sea and rivers

[@elainepettis5075]

The Great has certainly been taken out of Britain.

[@bhupindertube]

Things that can't be moved from one company to the other (pipes & tracks) should not have been privatised, i.e., water & trains. Probably energy too (gas & electricity).

[@janetobi2193]

Excellent discussion!

[@caz3502]

Anyone who has been promised compensation please note they put it into your account so if you pay by direct debit or standing order, its "floating " in your account. It's not paid direct to you. I've amened my payments until the end of the financial year

[@nicholasr39]

This happened in 1997 in South Hertfordshire and North London, so it's not the first time and won't be the last

[@ohkay7418]

This is what incontrollable capitalism do es

[@mgangel2679]

Make regulations that deprive shareholders of premiums in line with the scale of system integrity issues

[@dxd896]

When UK being lead by a Indian men and 2 Indian women this is what happened.

[@sbaby-kg8hn]

😮

[@oussamaalaoui9121]

Bro it is tochar who privatised water not the Indians

[@Coniungere]

If you haven't watched the movie Idiocracy, I suggest you watch it, then do something about everything, not just private water companies taking the mick to fill private shareholders coffers, there is no time left for us all to complain, feel ill & do nothing about what is happening anymore, once you're aware you have to do something, you just can't turn a blind eye. ❤✊️🌍

[@gavinsmith9564]

Life in Brexit Britain is nasty, brutish, and short. But blue passports.

[@HDsharp]

They need to be fined!

[@jacknicholas1300]

What’s the difference between southwest water and the rest of Yorkshire it’s all Yorkshire water, What I want to know, is why when you leave a glass of tap water a week, and come back it splits and has white bacteria all over it and congeals on top ?… what’s going on here kids been drinking this water and it most definitely wasn’t like this five years ago ?!

[@robhavock9434]

It's probably better for a person than aluminium sulfate if you lived in Camelford in the 80,s, I think I had it in 2000 after drinking stream water it was unpleasant, but immunity to it was I think the reasult.

[@kippertrace5808]

Aaand your paying top dollar for the privilege of being poisoned. Request your water supplier provide what chemicals are in your water. Then you bill them for the filtration stystem you need to purify their shite.

[@bea1365]

He said "any other things that might have alterered your immune system". I wonder what could cause that??? 🤔

[@coling3957]

SW has highest bills in UK..

[@silky567]

I do not drink tap water. .not even my plants get it...get a water distiller,that what I use...

[@ohkay7418]

I America we have pres Biden who has made a lot of infrastructure bills. Rump would make people pay till it hurts

[@hillbillymal9351]

South Devon

[@frankie6954]

We got the message, Quinney, it's not all the Tories fault.

[@kendo5862]

Was fine for supposedly decades ... .. what changed …?! 🧐

[@user-hv7kt9zc3m]

Its in south Devon on the English Riviera

[@fionagregory9147]

Yes.

[@etive]

People scratching their head wondering how we got here. Can only be PROFIT driven and absolutely, universally nothing else. Fact check that till the cows come home folks and i bet some people come up with a different angle.. Fergal Sharkey is the only honerable person who will sort this out if you let him.

[@m.m.m.m.4648]

How the first world country become third world country. Not only with the water…

[@oussamaalaoui9121]

Excuse me but in third world countrys we dont have contaminated water

[@m.m.m.m.4648]

@@oussamaalaoui9121 hahaha! True 😬🤣

[@andrelopez2514]

I live in the third world and I dont have to boil the tap water O.O

[@stequality]

Get what you vote for

[@klaus1085]

Voting makes no difference 🐑😵‍💫

[@Wheelieblue]

Yep, vote tories in for years and end up drinking shite 😂

[@stequality]

@@klaus1085 I agree with you

[@You-are-right-but]

You do know that the UK imports chlorine from Europe...but some fool put Brexit in the way.

[@aurimaspuscius7175]

Ha i had people laughing at my UV light water treatment.

[@2gointruth]

“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall never be hungry, and whoever believes in me shall never be thirsty” - (The Prophet and Messiah Jesus of Nazareth at John 6: 35) -

[@susanplatt5331]

Tory Britain. You got what you wanted and the rest of us have to suffer your ignorance.

[@fionagregory9147]

South of Devon you ...

[@badcarlos551]

Blame Thatcher

[@ieuansymmonds6967]

Not just Devon I bet

[@theroyalone7588]

I’m moving to the Americas

[@christophertrueman]

M&S bottled water is ph 2.9!

[@frederickkay4308]

Hardly correct information about this situation AGAIN. They have natural springs and access to bottled water that is getting handed out

[@elainetheresa8416]

Not everyone got a car. Some people are housebound.

[@frederickkay4308]

@@elainetheresa8416 well neighbour can help and the whole town wouldn’t let them do without water

[@mycatspethooman5590]

​@@frederickkay4308a lot of elderly are living isolated or unable to carry heavy bottles, do you really think today's population would be willing to help?

[@alibali672]

Do you know that for a fact? Two winters ago that same water company left many people with NO water at all for several days, not even a bottle and no information on what was happening. People had to catch rain water with buckets and pans.

[@frederickkay4308]

@@mycatspethooman5590 Well we all help our local community that can’t afford gas and electric and also can’t eat. All the pensioners we help and we are from the north and can’t afford nothing ourselves and we get no publicity about how they can’t afford to eat and put money on gas and electric. It’s what normal human beings do

[@regagrey3680]

Trial run