WATER quality has been one of the key issues in this year’s general election, with candidates from most parties calling for action on the companies running our supplies.
To help voters decide who has the best message on this issue, a campaign group is preparing to hold a hustings event in Reading tomorrow (Monday).
Surfers Against Sewage’s UK tour aims to put sewage pollution at the heart of election debate, with a road trip aimed at highlighting the state of rivers and seas.
The tour started at Windermere last week, and has travelled the country, and harks back to the group’s early days when they toured with surfboards to protest and paddle.
Other destinations include the banks of the River Swale, in the constituency of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
It will be in Hill Meadows Car Park, off George Street and just around the corner from Thames Water’s UK headquarters.
The event starts with a paddle-out on the Thames from 5.30pm to 6.15pm, before holding a hustings event in conjunction with River Action.
Among those confirmed are: Carolyne Culver (Green, Reading West and Mid Berkshire), Tony Page – Matt Rodda representative (Labour, Reading Central), Henry Wright or Helen Belcher (Lib Dem, Reading Central or Reading West and Mid Berkshire).
The group have invited other candidates to attend.
Giles Bristow, CEO of Surfers Against Sewage, said: “All aboard the Number Two bus – wer are going on tour.
“We are hitting the road, wetsuits, and surfboards in tow, to raise a stink about the sewage scandal in major election battlegrounds across the UK.
“This election is a pivotal moment in the fight to end sewage pollution and we’re determined to grasp it with both hands – and to bring some much-needed fun to the battle-bus bore-fest while we do it. After all, road trips are in surfing’s DNA.”
He continued: “From Edinburgh to St Agnes, the SAS party bus will be taking an ever-changing crew of campaigners from town-to-town, helping local communities uncover which of their parliamentary candidates are truly committed to cutting the crap.
“We’ve been on the front line fighting against sewage pollution for more than 30 years and so we know how to sniff out flash-in-the-pan pledges from insincere vote-seeking candidates. Approaching our ninth General Election, our crack team of campaigners will be laser-focused on obtaining real commitments to deliver long-term change for our rivers and seas, from all political parties.
“This is a national issue that is firing up a real sense of fury and outrage in communities – a true thread that links voters up and down the country and across the political spectrum. We’re mobilising our SAS party bus to show election candidates that if tackling sewage pollution isn’t top of their to do list, their campaign needs a major rethink – fast.”
For more details, or to book, log on to: https://www.sas.org.uk/updates/we-are-going-on-tour/or https://www.tickettailor.com/events/surfersagainstsewage1/1283014
