Clean Water Directive: citizens must be heard

European Parliament to confirm changes to the Drinking Water Directive, says citizens must be listened to.

"European citizens have made their voices heard repeatedly, but will now have to wait for the new Parliament to decide on the quality of water they drink", said Michel Dantin MEP, the lead negotiator for the European Parliament on the dossier on water quality, anticipating the vote validating Parliament's official position ahead of the European elections.

Dantin explained that the European Parliament already adopted its position on the Drinking Water Directive in October last year, whereas the Member States only came to an agreement in March this year. "We were happy to see Member States finally agreeing on the changes to the legislation, but disappointed it happened so late", he said.

For the EPP Group, it is important to reiterate that debate on the quality of drinking water is not a debate about who should and should not have access to water.

"It is understood that everyone should have access to clean and good quality water, and we should do our utmost to make it as affordable as possible for everyone. Insisting that countries absorb the costs through their state budgets goes against existing country traditions, and is only a mirage because in the end, it is always the taxpayer that foots the bill", recalled Dantin.

The agreement expected to be validated today is a result of the first-ever successful European Citizens’ Initiative, called ‘Right2Water’ which gathered over 1.8 million signatures in support of improving access to safe drinking water for all Europeans.