DWI told to consider fewer audits of water companies

A report commissioned by the Department of the Environment has cleared the way for checks by the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) of water companies' compliance with drinking water quality rules to be reduced.¹ It recommends that DWI audits of companies which have externally certificated quality management systems should be cut down. But the report itself contains evidence that external assessors cannot always be relied upon, and fails to follow up signs that companies do not always observe rules on reporting of potential contamination incidents.