Legendary comic and all round good guy Paul Whitehouse is staggered by the “liquid death” he encounters while investigating Britain’s rivers, for a new BBC documentary.
The keen angler, who features in a fishing show with friend and funnyman Bob Mortimer, sets out to discover whether the nation’s water companies are illegally discharging untreated sewage to cut corners and in turn increase profits for shareholders.
Since the late 80s, when water firms were privatised by the Tory government, they have become big business raking in eye-watering profits.
In 2022, Yorkshire Water made £240million profit and United Utilities made £600m, reports The Mirror.
In the show Paul meets ex police officer Ashley Smith who is trying to hold the water firms to account. Ashley claims that since 1989, £72billion has gone from the industry, mostly to stakeholders in China, Canada and Abu Dhabi.
So angry
BBC breakfast shared the video with Paul and wrote: “‘I’m so angry about it’ Comedian and angler Paul Whitehouse spoke to #BBCBreakfast after he investigated the ‘dumping’ of sewage in UK waterways for a BBC documentary.”
Paul, who also meets pop star-turned-campaigner Feargal Sharkey in the show, adds: “I still find it astonishing that the water companies would put untreated sewage into our rivers.”
Paul Whitehouse: Our Troubled Rivers is on BBC2 on Sunday at 8pm.
Related: #TorySewageParty trends AGAIN as list of Tories voting to allow sewage dumping goes viral
