On Monday 21 October, the MP for Twickenham, Munira Wilson wrote to the Mayor of London about Thames Water's proposals and water quality in Teddington.

In the letter, Munira Wilson MP says that she was "pleased" to hear Sadiq Khan's and Environment Secretary, Steve Reed's "ambitious" ten-year plan to clean up London's polluted rivers and improve water quality across the capital.

It reads: " I was particularly pleased that you plan to prioritise a polluted area of the River Thames around Teddington, in my constituency, to make it clean and safe for wild swimming."

However, Munira MP saw some faults in the Mayor's plans, writing: "Yet, I know you are also aware of an apparent conflict that has perplexed residents: the Government has told us they would like to prioritise water quality at Teddington, yet the environment secretary recently gave the green light to proposals that would see Thames Water pump treated effluent into our precious stretch of waterway.

"As you know, Thames Water's recently approved Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP) includes the Teddington Direct River Abstraction proposals (TDRA), which would pump treated effluent water into the river above Teddington Lock by an underground pipeline from Mogden Sewage Treatment Works."

She explains that, while city TDRA still needs to proceed through a separate national planning process to be approved, she and residents are "extremely worried about the environmental impact of these proposals, including on human health, biodiversity, wildlife and, of course, water quality".

The letter adds: "With the Environment Agency itself having said that Thames Water have so far failed to show that the Teddington scheme is "feasible or environmentally acceptable", this alone should be a compelling reason to stop the proposals in their tracks."

The Twickenham MP also refers to the worry that the trust in water companies is at "rock bottom" due to "eye-watering" bills, the shocking amount of water lost three lakes, sky-high bonuses and illegal sewage dumping, and the fact that local residents "don't trust Thames Water".

This lack of trust, she says, comes when Thames Water tells residents that "water quality will not be compromised".

The Mayor of London is to have conversations with Thames Water about these "inherent conflicts" and the potential consequences of the TDRA.

Munira Wilson MP ends the letter asking London's Mayor if she could meet with him to share residents' and local environmental groups' perspectives on the issue.

You can read her full letter here.