A cross-party group of MPs is to call for water meters to be installed in all homes in the UK as soon as possible to help to conserve water. It also wants the Government to look urgently at banning single-flush toilets and water fittings that are not efficient, possibly including power showers. The MPs believe that water meters could be crucial in restoring trust between water companies and their customers, which they claim has been damaged by the industry making high profits at a time of rapidly rising prices. Recent problems with leakage, flooding and fines from Ofwat, the industry regulator, related to customer service have all contributed to the deterioriation of trust between water companies and their cutomers, the MPs say. The group, chaired by Elliot Morley, the former water minister, has proposed that the five-yearly review of prices put in place at the time of water privatisation in the 1990s should be replaced with a 25-year strategic plan, in which capital expenditure is reviewed every ten years and prices every five years. The report on the future of the water sector, to be released this week, comes at a critical time for the industry, which is approaching another five-yearly price review in 2009. The price review will set tariffs and determine the level of investment in infrastructure for the next five years. The report proposes a wholesale shake-up of the structure that was put in place at privatisation and suggests a bigger role for the Consumer Council for Water, to protect customers. It says that existing levels of domestic water usage – the Government estimates it at 159 litres per person per day, the equivalent of one tonne of water per week – are unsustainable. Britain is one of a handful of European countries without full metering. At present 30 per cent of domestic properties in England are metered, although this varies from 7 per cent to 66 per cent, depending on individual water companies. Installation of a water meter can cost upwards of £200, a sum that initially is picked up by the water company but charged back to customers through bills. The high cost means that many companies have a haphazard approach to installing meters – for example, when there is a change of occupancy at a property. There is also concern that low-income families would be disadvantaged by compulsory metering. The MPs are suggesting that the tax credit and benefit system could be used to help vulnerable households. The report will say that this would encourage companies to take a longer-term view and iron out peaks and troughs of investment that can lead to higher costs from contractors who work in the industry.

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