Therese Coffey says there has been "record amounts" of investment put into the UK's sewage network however Britons could see water bill rises following a £10bn sewage upgrade.
Speaking to Camilla Tominey on GB News, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says despite a possible jump in water bills, taxpayers will not be paying for penalties or fines given to water companies.
"There has been record amounts of investment into our sewer network, in particular over the last 25 years since privatisation, that's what that unlocked as well as what is supposed to be a more efficient way of doing these sorts of projects.
"We set out last year a storm overflow reduction plan to nearly £60bn and what I want to make crystal clear is that people aren't going to be paying for the penalties or the fine, that has to come from the companies themselves.
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says despite a possible jump in water bills, taxpayers will not be paying for penalties or fines given to water companies
GB News
"We have seen the way getting that investment to modernising out infrastructure.
"For example not far from here we've got the Thames tideway super-sewer, that's a multi billion pound project which has taken about a decade and is being paid for through bills over that length of time but that will eradicate the need for overflows themselves."
Water companies in England apologised for repeated sewage spills and pledged to invest £10bn in an attempt to put an end to public anger over pollution in seas and rivers.
The new water and sewage transformation plan aims to help up to 100 communities protect rivers and outdoor areas of water used for swimming.
Questioning Coffey about the extra costs for taxpayers, Tominey said: "But can you understand the frustration of people who are really hard pushed at the moment financially being charged more for what are water companies mistakes when it comes to sewage?"
Coffey replied: "What I'm saying to you is, the fines and the penalties will not be coming from taxpayers money."
"So why is this extra money being added to our bills, water companies have said expect to pay more, even though we can't swim in our rivers safely?" Tominey asked.
Coffey said: "Well actually Camilla, of our over 400 designated bathing water sites, the quality of that has gone up since 2010.
The new water and sewage transformation plan aims to help up to 100 communities protect rivers and outdoor areas of water used for swimming
PA
"Then there was about 70 per cent were deemed good or excellent, now it's 93 per cent."
A detailed National Overflows Plan will be published later this summer, explaining each company’s approach to improving their overflows.
In addition, a new national environmental hub with information on all 15,000 overflows in the country will increase transparency and allow the public to hold companies to account.
