 Felly, dyma'r ynch yn ei ddechrau, ond mae yw'r adnod trafoddd o'r cyfle oherwydd rhaid i'r Ryfnod amgylchedd o'r rheswr i ddechrau sydd wedi'i gilydd ar gyflosio ddod i gael yma. Rwy'n credu'r ddysgu'r ddod i'r ddod i'r rheswr i'r ddod i'r ryf yn gyflosio'r ddod i'r rheswr i'r ddod i'r ddod i'r ryf yn gyflosio'r ddod i'r rheswr i'r rheswr i'r ddod i'r Mae'r argynwys ar Arlman, rydyn ni gynhyrchu'r ffordd, a'r gwaith am y gynhyrch yn ddwylo'r gwasanaeth, ond mae'n gwybod i ddweud ein bod yn ddolfyn, yn fawr dros i'r awker, i ddweud i'r welfannaf Llohmand, i'r Llohnes ar hyn am ydw i'n defnyddio'n gwybod i'r ddweud i fod fyddiol y gallwch yn ei ddisgyrfaenol, a yn gyfawr i'ch myfsigol iawn. Efallai i ddweud am gweithio modd o dda ar naes, ac efallai ei fod yn gweithio arnynnodd gan dda nhw bydderau i ddau sydd yn ddod. Felly, mae'n mynd i gyd i gyd yn gweithio ar ei ddweud yn gweithio ar ddweud cyllidol. Mae'n ddweud i gyd yn gweithio ar gwaith hwnnw, yn gweithio'n gweithio ar dda hwnnw, iaith i ddweud sy'n galw wahanol gyda gwybod yn ddweud â'r cyflwyngau. The fact is that, ydw i'n ddweud ddweud, dyma'n ddweud yn gallu ffyrdd Llywodraeth fel ychydigiaeth. Roes i bod, y mae'n bod yn ddweud y gallu ffyrdd Llywodraeth a Llywodraeth a Llywodraeth yn ddweud iloedd yn siarad o'r symud? Ond yn ddweud, yn y ddych karmaf, rwy'n ddig interest yn y ddweud yn dweud. That would be 30 times a day in 2020 and it would be 12,000 times. It is certainly more than this, as Scottish water currently only has the capacity to monitor just 3% of sewage release points. We need to rapidly scale up the monitoring system so that we can assess the full extent of what is actually going on. As well as this, more investigations by the ferret revealed that 49% of 87% designated bathing waters recorded levels of fecal bacteria over the summer, that could endanger public health. Places like the West Sands in St Andrews, Etric Bay on the Isle of Bute, and Bellhaven Beach in Dunbar all recorded high levels of bacteria. At Imouth in the Borders, levels reached more than 50 times the legal limit. Presiding Officer, these are places many of us and our constituents spend time. I find it alarming that we may be exposed to so many so high levels of bacteria in so doing. What I find even more alarming is the lack of action that this Government has taken. I raised concerns about this with the First Minister in May. He may remember that. She informed me that she would come back to me with more detail about what the Government is doing. Last month I wrote to her because I still had not received that detail. This is not the first time that Liberal Democrats have tried to hold the Government to account on this. In December last year, my colleague Liam McArthur, yourself deputy Presiding Officer, asked the Environment Minister if the Scottish Government would look to bring in annual reporting on sewage releases if there was a plan to eliminate those overflows altogether. The reply is that we will not eliminate overflow because it is a vital part of the system. Presiding Officer, I find that hard to believe that this SNP-Green Government believe that it is vital to dump raw sewage into our waters, but that is the response that we received. By that logic, it seems to be arguing that it is inevitable that excrement, wet wipes and sanitary towels will be in the same waters where children will play, dogs will swim and fish will live. What sounds to me even more is that, as far as I am aware, this is the first day debate that we have ever had on sewage in this Parliament. Our bodies of water are being polluted whilst our Government sit on their hands. Shockingly, this is also happening in what we are supposed to be the tightest environmental regulations. This has been happening in Loch Leven, just a few miles from this chamber. For context, Loch Leven is a site of specific scientific interests, a special protected area, a Ramsar site and a natural nature reserve. That is four layers of environmental protection. All of these classifications mean that there are strict environmental protections in place, which should keep Loch Leven and the species that inhabit it safe and clean. Those regulations are being ignored, with raw sewage being dumped into it, with regularity. Will the member agree with the position that was put forward by Ross Finney, the Ex-Environmental Minister for the Lib Dems, who supported the idea that mutualising Scottish water was the way forward, which is really like privatising it? That is a bit off topic, and it is certainly an issue for a debate in another time. It says a lot about this Government's priorities, that that is the focus of their response and their rebuttal to these points, these realities, when we are desegrating our natural heritage. With raw sewage being dumped into Loch Leven, this Government is allowing the biodiversity of that place, that it provides and supports to be destroyed. It is allowing those who use the lock for open water swimming to be exposed to harmful fecal bacteria. Even Ian Blackford at Westminster sought to tear the UK Government to shreds for the scale of its sewage releases, but the Scottish Government certainly is not coming up smelling of roses either. When the local Lib Dem councillor Willie Robertson raised his concerns about the impact raw sewage would have on Loch Leven, he was told by SIPA that they understand and sympathise for your frustration at this situation, but the removal of those historic sewers will require a multimillion-pound investment and, as this is public money, it requires to be planned and spending to be justified. I am grateful to the member for giving way. With his comments on Loch Leven, whether I could get his view on the fact that SIPA inspected the location after the incident on 8 September and found no evidence of sewage debris or pollution in the water course before it entered Loch Leven, I wonder how he would like to respond to SIPA's finding in that regard. I am fascinated by that, because it flies in the face of fact. There are many witnesses to this happening. If the Government is telling us that this is not happening at all, I would like to hear that stated for the record. We will provide evidence to the country of that. It seems that, when our national environmental agency is told that something is happening, which is damaging an important piece of our environment, its response is to simply shrug their shoulders and say, well, not much we can do about it. That is simply not good enough. When we look at Loch Leven, the River Almond, Iamouth beach, the West Sands, all being polluted, I do not know what more evidence this SNP green Government needs to demonstrate that that investment is sorely needed. Perhaps the minister can illuminate the chamber on that in her closing remarks. As I have always said, we are incredibly privileged in this country to have the natural resources that we do. Let us not squander that privilege by allowing them to be ruined in this way. Thank you very much indeed. We now move to the open debate. I call First Audrey Nicholl to be followed by Liam Kerr. I would like to thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for bringing this debate forward. I welcome the opportunity to participate, not least of all, as chair of the Nigg waste water treatment works stakeholder group in my constituency of Aberdeen South and North Concardin. The motion brought forward focuses on our beaches, our bathing waters around Scotland, special places that should be clean, healthy and unspoiled by humans. We are responsible for making this happen. The north-east coastline is home to many fantastic beaches and bays that host swimmers, paddleboarders, surfers and a treasure trove of marine life. My constituency hosts the fabulous Greyhote Bay, which is consistently recorded as the best place to watch bottlenose dolphins from land in the UK. Only this week I met with Visit Aberdeenshire to discuss how to make the north-east a leading visitor destination. The natural environment was a key part of our discussion. I, for one, am very invested in the work to keep our precious waters clean, safe and pollution free. Since becoming chair of our local stakeholder group, I have had the opportunity to better understand the scale of our wastewater infrastructure in Scotland and the significant challenges our behaviour, climate change, to name but 2, are placing on it. In recent years, Scottish Water and SEPA have worked together to upgrade over 100 wastewater treatment works and around 280 overflow points. I welcome the measures announced last December by the Scottish Government that we will see the investment of a further half a billion pounds to improve Scotland's wastewater network. We know that a significant pressure on our wastewater system is climate change. The increase in frequency and intensity of storms is a significant challenge. I welcome the programme of installation of event monitors by Scottish Water and the development of approaches to create intelligent networks helping to reduce the risk of flooding and pollution incidents. Less than half a mile away from my home, a new water retention pond holds back water but in heavy rainfall floods. The pond enables the slow release of water and has brought added welcome benefit by creating a natural habitat for flora and fauna. Recently, our stakeholder group visited the site at Nigg, a really invaluable opportunity to understand the process of managing wastewater in an increasingly sustainable and smart way, using heat produced as an energy source and supplying the end product, or cake, to the agricultural sector as a form of fertilizer. I contribute to my colleagues on the stakeholder group from Scottish Water, SEPA, Aberdeen City Council, ward councillors and, importantly, community members, who come together to address a range of issues from odours to reporting processes, freak weather events and public awareness. I commend the nature calls campaign that aims to get us all to think about how our own behaviour is contributing to pollution and how we can prevent it. One of the issues that the campaign highlights is the use of wet wipes that contain plastic and pollute our waters. That costs Scottish water around £7 million a year to clear and results in literally mountains of wet wipes ending up in landfill. I would ask the minister to do all that she can within the legislative constraints available in Scotland to support the effort to ban wet wipes containing plastics. To conclude, I again thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for bringing this important debate forward that highlights the opportunities and challenges we all face going forward to ensure that we preserve our precious waters for generations to come. Thank you very much, Ms Nicol. I now call Liam Kerr to be followed by Mercedes Villalba for around four minutes, Mr Kerr. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I congratulate Alex Cole-Hamilton on securing this member's business, not least because it's not before time, as he rightly pointed out, because when I looked back at this, what I found was, like Mr Cole-Hamilton, what appears to be an extraordinary complacency on the part of the Scottish Government. You see, when I looked at it, far from recognising the issue and stealing themselves to do something about it, I found the minister, in a contribution in December 21, crowing when it comes to Scotland's water we have so much to be proud of and trying to divert attention by making spurious comparisons with other countries, an answer which he repeated practically verbatim in June of 2022 having presumably pulled the last script off the shelf, and when this month the courier reported that Scottish Water had dumped raw sewage into Loch Leven in what NatureScot terms a serious pollution incident, the minister was asked for comment and declining to do so perhaps because her view, judging by her intervention earlier, appears to be that it didn't happen, a Scottish Government spokesperson was wheeled out to say simply that investment had been made in the past and there'd been more to come. There was no mention of what would actually change, its utter complacency, but of course the various comparisons made by the minister are actually false equivalences because the ferret report that Mr Cole-Hamilton brought up in the motion refers to the Scottish Government's Water Environment Policy Manager, David Lister, saying that only 10% of overflows are monitored in Scotland compared to 80% in England. So I suspect that Alex Cole-Hamilton is right in his motion that the true figure of discharges is likely much higher. Actually, I don't suspect, I know because I got figures through an FOI just last week from Scottish Water covering the period from 2017 to 2021 showing a total of 563,500 hours worth of sewage overflow recorded in that period in Scotland, and that is an increase of around 70% in that time. Yes, you heard that right. The SNP have been allowing thousands of hours worth of sewage to be pumped into our rivers and locks for years, and the problem is only getting worse. Remember, that data is only from 10% of the overflows. Presiding Officer, that lack of data really worries me. In committee yesterday, I asked Nature Scott what impact these overflows were having on their sites, and I was told and I quote, we don't have a lot of information on the effects this has on protected sites and species. In the same session, I twice put the 10% figure to SIPA and asked whether they felt that that was sufficient monitoring and or whether it should align to England at 80% to ensure that we can actually see what's going on rather than simply denigrating the English and European figures. But no answer was forthcoming, and it would be very interesting to hear what the Minister's view is of that 10% figure in her closing. The Freedom of Information request also found out that the cleanup costs for sewage spills in Scotland has soared by 500% over largely the same period. That will be the cleanup of the 49 of the 87 designated bathing waters around Scotland on which SIPA recorded unsafe levels of fecal bacteria as a result of sewage contamination that Alex Cole-Hamilton mentioned in his motion. I really do congratulate Alex Cole-Hamilton on drawing attention to this problem and giving the Minister a chance in closing not to tell us how much investment has been made in the past, which we've heard is not preventing the overflows, not to throw up false equivalences to denigrate our UK and European friends and suggest all is well in Scotland, not to simply say, as she did in December last year, we are determined and poised to do more. But to acknowledge her government's failure, acknowledge it simply is not good enough and set out clearly, concisely and comprehensively what her government is going to do to address this shameful record. Thank you. Thank you, Mr Kerr. I now call Mercedes Villalba to be followed by Arrianne Burgess again for around four minutes, Mr Alba. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'd like to begin by thanking Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing this important debate today. His motion rightly stresses the importance of affording the highest possible protection to our natural environment. But this is not currently the case for Scotland's waters. As we've already heard, the ferret reported that untreated human waste was discharged into Scotland's waters more than 10,000 times last year. That suggests that current regulation of Scotland's waters is failing. It's failing to ensure that water is clean, it's failing to ensure that water poses no risk to public health, and it's failing to ensure that water is protected as part of our natural environment. This failure can be seen in the case of the River Almond, where there were 500 occasions in 2019 of sewage being released through combined sewage overflows, CSOs. CSOs release not only sewage and floodwater, but sanitary waste flush down toilets as well. Campaigners have previously highlighted the risk that this poses to public health, with the Almond regularly used for both swimming and fishing by the public. They have called for public warnings to be issued when CSOs are in operation, and I hope that the Minister will reflect on that point. It's clear that steps must be taken to improve regulation of Scotland's waters. By the admission of the Scottish Government's own water environment policy manager, the monitoring of sewage overflows in Scotland is not as comprehensive as that undertaken in England. A Scottish Government briefing acquired by the ferret highlighted that just 10 per cent of CSOs were monitored in Scotland compared to 80 per cent in England. An FOI, requested by the ferret, also revealed that over 12,000 sewage overflows were recorded by Scottish Water in 2020. Given the scale of monitoring lags behind that in England, I'm concerned that those figures are likely to be understating the problem. I hope that, in her response, the Minister will outline what steps the Scottish Government is taking to improve the monitoring of sewage overflows. While monitoring of overflows must improve, there's also a need for Scottish Water to upgrade its network to ensure that this happens. CEPA has previously asked Scottish Water to install spill monitors on all the sewer overflows that discharge to designated bathing waters by the end of 2024. Scottish Water has confirmed that it has installed monitors at just 354 of its 3,600 overflows with another 1,000 planned by the end of 2024. I expect the Minister would cite Covid for the slow progress that is being made, so I'm not going to ask her to explain why such little progress has been made, but I would like to know what she's doing to get things back on track. Presiding Officer, in improving monitoring and upgrading the network are both necessary steps, but we have to reflect on what we want regulation of Scotland's waters to achieve. Scottish Labour is clear that Scottish Water should remain in public ownership and that the creeping privatisation of wastewater services must be ended. Regulation of Scotland's waters must be driven by four core principles—keeping Scotland's water in public hands, ensuring access to clean water for local communities, protecting public health and protecting Scotland's natural environment. I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing this crucial debate. As we've heard already, the ferret has identified that untreated human waste flowing into Scotland's seas and rivers is a huge problem, especially when more and more people living in Scotland and visiting Scotland want to get closer to nature and get in the water. In my region, the Highlands and Islands, we are lucky to have some areas with pristine water, including forebathing water sites where pollution was undetectable or very low last year. This is so important to our local economy, as many coastal communities depend on tourists who want to enjoy beautiful clear seas, locks and rivers and the wildlife that they support. However, we also have some of the most polluted areas. Etric Bay, as was mentioned, and the Isle of Bute and two beaches in Nairn are all in the top 25 most polluted bathing waters. However, even if we get, as Alex Cole-Hamilton has called for, reduced discharges, sewage monitoring, reported and upgraded sewage systems, that won't solve the problems with Scotland's waters. It's not just human waste that pollutes our seas, locks and rivers. Environmental Standards Scotland found that pollution from agricultural activities, including spreading slurries on fields, affected the highest number of water bodies in Scotland. According to the National Trust for Scotland, just one moderately-sized salmon farm will discharge the same amount of sewage as a town twice the size of Oben. Recently approved, salmon farm off Papawestria in Orkney has the potential to produce effluent equivalent to 49,000 people. Waste is already released from five other salmon farms nearby, needless to say, locals don't want to swim there. In Argyllinbu, locals face a similar problem. My constituent who runs a holiday business there depends on people wanting to swim in the nearby bay. He and wild swimmers, divers and other local water users are concerned that the pesticides and waste from a proposed salmon farm a short distance away will contaminate the bay. While SIPA monitors levels of fecal bacteria in bathing waters, it doesn't issue guidance on safe levels of pesticides such as hydrogen peroxide in other water bodies. Those who regularly dip in these waters may be at risk, as indicated by a toxicology report by the independent consultants WCA. It's not just recreational users of water who are affected. Too much effluent from sewage or fish farms anywhere can damage nursery grounds harmful to species like scallops, shellfish, lobsters and crabs. Key commercial species on which sustainable creel fishers and divers depend. Waste wherever it comes from is undermining livelihoods as well as the local food supply that our seas naturally produce. Just as Alex Coe Hamilton has called for enhanced monitoring and reporting of sewage discharges, we need much closer monitoring, inspection, reporting and enforcement of agriculture. SIPA and Marine Scotland must be fully resourced and empowered to carry out these duties to preserve the health of our waters for all of us to enjoy. A Just Economics report found that fish farm waste discharge into the marine environment carries the cost of almost £37 million per year. Untreated human waste will also carry a heavy cost. If we are serious about tackling the climate and nature emergencies, we need to seriously improve the way that we deal with waste from humans, fish farms and agriculture. Can I start by thanking Alex Coe Hamilton for bringing this debate to the Parliament this evening? I completely agree with the member that Scotland's natural environment deserves the highest standards of protection. When I was elected as a councillor at South Asia back in 2017, I was extremely alarmed to learn that air beach water quality had been classified poor for several years, and if it tested poor for five consecutive years, then air beach would lose its designated bathing water status. Air beach is unique, and the situation was challenging as the river Dune and the river air both run into air beach and the agricultural run-off from neighbouring farms was another factor which was affecting the water quality at air beach. Losing the bathing water status would just be catastrophic for air. During 2020, and as a ward councillor at the time, I worked with Keep Scotland Beautiful, and I'd like to thank my colleague Emma Harper, who arranged at that time a meeting with myself and Scottish Water and Seafer at the Scottish Parliament back in 2018 to discuss how we could improve their water quality at air beach. During 2020, Scottish Water invested £10 million to include three increased storage tanks in the surrounding area. After being classified poor for four years in a row, thankfully in 2021, with the collaborative work of South Asia Council, Seafer, Scottish Water, which was supported by the Scottish Government, and farmers and rural land managers, air beach was finally received a good classification. The work does not stop there. It is indisputable that the discharge of raw sewage into rivers and seas in Scotland is, unfortunately, on the increase. Scottish Water has said that the growing problem of sewage discharge into rivers is not caused by failure to provide the correct infrastructure, but the increase in heavy rain due to climate change. Climate change and flooding is a huge problem. I'd like to highlight a project which is currently ongoing in Presswick. There is a historic and complex issues relating to sewer flooding in Presswick. In 2019, the Presswick Strategic Drainage project was set up, and this included Scottish Water, elected members, Ayrshire Roads Alliance and local community councils. The aim of the group was to identify strategic short-term, medium-term and long-term measures to put in place in local areas of concern where flooding occurs regularly. Short-term solutions were put in place such as speed tables, which are on the road a slightly raised tarmac, which will alleviate flooding, and the medium-term solutions that are planned are to put in use storage pipes and water tanks. The ongoing work has seen improvements in Presswick, but, as individual households, there are things that we can be doing to mitigate surface water flooding when we have this increased rain due to climate change. Rain butts in gardens, which are basically big tubs that hold rainwater and rain garden planters, and also limit the amount of area that we tarmac, such as in driveways, as this adds to the problem of surface water locally and it cannot be absorbed into the ground. So we can all be doing our bit and be mindful about climate change. I welcome that Scottish Government is being proactive here and has implemented its river basin management plan for 2021 to 2027, which takes comprehensive action on sewage spills amongst other water quality issues. The plan includes actions to increase monitoring, provide more public information, reduce sewage litter and reduce spill frequency, and I look forward to hearing from the Minister on how this plan is going. I welcome the genuine concerns that have been raised by members tonight. However, I want to highlight that Scotland's bathing water quality is the best that it has been since 2015, when the strictest standards came into force. On top of that, 38% of bathing sites are now rated as excellent, and let's not forget that Scotland has the highest number of high-quality rivers in the UK, with 66% in good condition. I look forward to the improvement plans outlaid by SIPA, increasing the numbers further. To conclude, I want to see Scotland as a world leader in our water quality across all possible measures. Yes, we have our problems and they need to be addressed, but we are improving, and we are on our way to reaching this goal. I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing this debate today, because the issue of sewage and pollution needs to be tackled more effectively. I also thank the ferret team for the work that they do generally, but specifically for what they have done to help uncover this problem and to draw our attention to the problems that far too many of our communities face. Alex Cole-Hamilton focused on the problems identified in the River Amond, but we also have problems that constituents have brought to me regarding the River Esk, the Water of Leith and the River Forth. In relation to the River Esk, one of my constituents gave me examples of the impact of waste and sewage, which both impact on that area but also downstream. He identified dry burn as a particular area, and he showed me photographs of its negative impact. My constituent has also identified problems with the Water of Leith, which impacts on the river all the way down to the shore at Leith, where it then sees pollution released into the River Forth. When I raised those issues with SEPA this summer, they sent me a response this autumn where it was interesting to see the different classifications for bathing waters in Edinburgh and East Lothian. While nine of the areas identified were categorised as good or excellent, it is really interesting to see that Portobello West and Central beaches, Seat and Sands and Milsey Bay at North Berwick were only identified as sufficient. One of the challenges is that, where we get pollution, it can happen. We need to have more monitoring, more mapping so that all of our rivers have accurate information and that action can be taken to address the problem upstream as well as going down to our beaches. For me, one of the most striking impacts of Covid was how people relied more on our local beaches for leisure, for swimming, for surfing and people were holidaying at home, but we also have many more people who are doing wild swimming all year round. I think that we need to know that our beaches and our rivers are as safe as they can be, and as Mercedes Villalba highlighted, we need accurate, up-to-date information so that people can be confident of their safety. As the motion says, pouring sewage into the water puts us at risk of harmful bacteria and viruses such as E. coli, gastroenteritis, ear, nose and throat infections, and if anyone locally knows the impact of just E. coli, businesses having to close, it is really disruptive and it really impacts. The BBC reported that the number of recorded spills from combined sewage overflows in Scotland's rivers and seas has increased by 40 per cent over the last five years, with 12,725 spill events in 2020 and at least 120 million cubic metres of wastewater spilled from CSOs between 2016 and 2020. We need to be looking at those overflows because CSOs are designed to spill during heavy rainfall to prevent sewer flooding and properties, but the data is incomplete and the BBC suggests that the number and volume of spills is likely to be higher because the list that they have received is only a fraction of the operating CSOs and that is because Scottish Water is only required to monitor less than 3 per cent of CSOs for pollution and there is no volume data for over half the spill events, so we need more action. Sea Put and Scottish Water have recognised that there is an increase in the frequency with which some CSOs are discharging sewage and their status due to the increases in water flows which exceed the flows that sewers were originally designed to handle and blockages from inappropriate flushed items as people have talked already. Scottish Water stated that in the route map to improve urban waters they are going to increase monitoring to cover all CSOs and that that should involve approximately a thousand additional monitors, so what I'm really keen to see is that we get that work progressed as soon as possible so we can see practical real improvements in our rivers and natural environment. According to the advocacy group Surfers Against Sewage, Scottish Water's data shows the equivalent of 47,000 olympic-sized swimming pools, worth of waste has been discharged in 2016 and that gives you a real sense of the scale of the challenge. In the summing up speech today from the minister, I'd be really keen to hear from her about the proposals that Surfers Against Sewage have raised with us. Stronger and bolder targets to end untreated sewers discharge, an enhanced testing regime, which gives a true picture of our water quality in real time, nature restoration to reduce pressure and minimise impacts in sewage infrastructure, increased investment from industry and infrastructure to prevent destructive practices and I think the powerful comments from Audrey Nicholl and Siobhan Brown highlighted climate change, we're going to get more rainfall, we're going to get more intense rain, so it really means that we need to up the standards, up the investment so that we don't just meet our challenges now and create clean water for everybody across the country, but we actually tackle it for the future so we don't see sewage and pollution damaging our rivers and beaches. Thank you very much Ms Boyack. I now invite Mary McCallant to respond to the debate around seven minutes. I am very pleased to be taking part in today's debate and I do thank Alec Cole-Hamilton for bringing it. It's a topic I know he cares about and I do as well. It's given me a chance to listen, as I always want to, but in my closing I would like to respond to what's being said, rebut some of what in my view is inaccurate, but most importantly offer reassurance to the public, who I know have a very strong interest in this issue as well, reassure them that the Scottish Government is absolutely committed to the protection of our water environment, that our water environment already meets standards that are high by international comparisons, that we have achieved that working with our public water company, Scottish Water, regulated by the Independent Scottish Environment Protection Agency, and we've done that consistently with the lowest water bills across the UK, but finally that we are never complacent and we are always striving for progress and are doing what we can. We have concrete plans that are backed by multi-annual funds. I said that Scotland enjoys higher standards than our neighbours and I'll put the figures on that. 66 per cent of Scotland's water environment is already classed as in good condition and this compares to a European average of around 45 per cent and a figure for England of just 16. Now I can understand why Liam Kerr in the Tories might not want me to repeat those figures given its their part to her presiding over that deficit down south, but I am very proud of it. I have a lot I want to get on the record this afternoon, but I will take a short intervention. I'm very grateful. The minister appears to have entirely missed my point that if you only monitor 10 per cent of the overflows, as against 80 per cent monitor in England, you'll get a false equivalent. Does she not appreciate that? If so, will she not increase the monitoring to 80 per cent like in the jurisdiction she sites? I can give you all the time back. The figures that I cite are actually not linked directly to monitoring of CSOs. They're about a holistic assessment of the water quality in Scotland and, in fact, if you break down the aggregate, the things that constitute that overall water quality, which is about the water quality itself, the water quantity, fish migration, they're actually higher than 66 per cent and I would be delighted to provide the member with those figures. So as I say, I'm proud of this, but we're not complacent because now through our third river basin management plan, we've set out our most ambitious plans ever and these set out the steps that we want to take to get our overall quality to 81 per cent and that by 2027. So in December, I gave a statement on this plan and how it together with Scottish waters improving urban waters route map would drive substantial improvements over future years. Now, Presiding Officer, the discussion today has focused on the sewer network and I would say swimming in bathing waters, so I'd like to address both of these issues. There are, I think, misconceptions around the operation of the sewer network in Scotland. There has been some focus recently on Scottish water supposedly to start discharging raw sewage on a regular basis. Just while I'm on that point, I would like to clarify that my intervention on Alex Cole-Hamilton about Loch Leven was not that there wasn't an incident, it was about the characterisation of the incident and what SEPA had done as part of its licensing and monitoring of the situation. Yes, absolutely. Alex Cole-Hamilton. I'm grateful, Deputy Presiding Officer, and I'm very grateful for the clarification from the Minister, but that has changed the character of the entire debate. I mean, you would be forgiven if you were listening to the Minister's intervention on my remarks for believing that there had been no event in Loch Leven, but we know and we have empirical evidence that there are events not just in Loch Leven, but in water courses the length and breadth of this country. This Government can't go on pretending that it isn't happening and I am concerned with the slightly disingenuous intervention on my remarks. Why did she intervene on me if it wasn't the case in the first place? If I was disingenuous it was not my intention and the reason that I made that intervention there is to clarify what I had intended, which was about pointing out that SEPA had taken an active assessment of the situation and also to point out that members ought not to refer to raw sewage when the system is designed not to allow that to happen. That was the point that I was trying to make. Alex Cole-Hamilton briefly. On the occasion of my asking the First Minister about this a few months ago, Scottish Water contacted me and we had a very in-depth meeting about this very issue and they themselves admitted that what they describe as foul sewage, which is the untreated stuff that comes out of your toilet, is being regularly pumped into the waterways of this country. Does the Minister recognise that that is a reality of the situation that we are here to discuss? The point that I am trying to make is that when we would seek to refer to specific incidents we should be very clear about the terminology of raw sewage and the extent to which SEPA monitor that. Now, if the member would like to discuss individual situations with me I am always happy to do that as will SEPA be content to do that as well. Now, the system that we have is designed, as some members have explained, to overflow so that when there is that intense rainfall very dilute sewage will spill. The alternative, of course, is to have this wastewater backing up into customers homes, which I think—and I would hope that we could all agree—would not be acceptable. Now, as members should also know, this process must be licensed by SEPA, our environment agency, who will ensure that there is no adverse effect on the water environment. Now, unfortunately, as members have reflected, including Siobhan Brown and Sarah Boyack, climate change means that we are experiencing storm conditions on a more regular basis and intense rainfall events are overwhelming urban drainage systems. They are going to become more frequent, but we are already taking action in anticipation of that. Scottish Water no longer accepts new surface water connections to the sewer unless there is no alternative, for example. We are also looking to utilise nature-based solutions, including blue-green infrastructure, which can turn the management of rain and surface water from a problem into an opportunity. That is preventative action, but I understand that members and the public want to know that the infrastructure that the CSOs, for example, are being improved. I can just briefly say where we have come from before looking to where we are going. Since 2010, Scottish Water, working with SEPA, has taken action to upgrade 104 wastewater treatment works and 279 storm overflows across the country. That has been backed by £686 million of investment. Now we plan to go even further. In the Scottish Water route map that I mentioned, it sets out plans to invest a further £0.5 billion during the period 2021-27. That will include, over the next six years, approximately £150 million to improve the remaining 40 wastewater treatment works and 26 priority storm overflows, which will benefit around 400km of Scotland's rivers and locks. The route map also sets out how it will deliver solutions for another 235 storm overflows by 2031 and, again, back by £150 million. Just for Mercedes Villalba's benefit, that work is on track, and I will be happy to keep members up-to-date with it. Monitoring has been mentioned this afternoon. The route map sets out plans to improve monitoring and public communication on over 1,000 of the highest priority storm overflows by 2024. Scottish Water is currently working to identify the right locations for monitoring. In December this year, it will publish its first annual update to highlight progress made. In the time that I have left, I would like to briefly mention wild swimming. Firstly, the figures quoted in the motion were not produced by SIPA and do not, in SIPA's opinion, reflect how advice on water quality ought to be given. It must also be remembered that rivers and other open water locations that are not bathing waters are managed for the purpose of protecting fish and wildlife, not people. Indeed, the UK health security agency advises that anyone can become unwell from swimming in any open water. As I said, 99 per cent of our designated bathing waters are passing environmental standards with more than ever reaching excellent level. I am conscious of time. After a decade of investment, we are backed by nearly £700 million. Scotland has that 66 per cent good water quality. There will always be challenges with an ageing infrastructure and the challenges of climate change, but we are determined to keep improving. We will continue to deliver investment to ensure that our environmental targets are met. As I said in December, I will continue to work with members across the Parliament to achieve the Government's ambitions. Thank you very much indeed Minister. That concludes the debate and I close this meeting of Parliament.