Political opinion with Josh Babarinde MP: Holding South East Water to account and protecting local maternity services at Eastbourne DGH
Many folks across Sovereign Harbour, Langney, Hampden Park and St Anthony’s experienced prolonged periods of low or zero water pressure over the weekend. This is now the fourth major water outage since I became Eastbourne’s MP. The latest incident is yet another appalling failure to add to a growing list of problems caused by South East Water.
I raised this issue in the House of Commons earlier this week, where I called for the resignation of South East Water’s Chief Executive, David Hinton, after residents were left without reliable access to water. In response, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Emma Reynolds, said she was as outraged as I was.
Despite my direct request, South East Water failed to provide a bottled water station in Eastbourne to support residents during the outage. Instead, people were forced to travel as far as East Grinstead, a round trip of more than 70 miles, to access emergency water supplies.
I also raised concerns for those on the Priority Services Register, many of whom were left without adequate support or clear information despite being among the most vulnerable in our community.
While residents continue to foot the bill to address these failures, South East Water’s Chief Executive, David Hinton, earns a base salary of £400,000 and appeared to receive a £115,000 bonus last year.
I have called for urgent reform of South East Water and for those responsible at the top of the company to be held properly accountable.
Local Midwifery Services Update
A power cut at the hospital last week led to the temporary closure of the Eastbourne Midwifery Unit.
While patient safety must always come first, this incident again highlights the consequences of outdated electrical and power systems.
The Trust’s maintenance backlog now stands at over £460 million, and ageing infrastructure should not be allowed to undermine the vital work of our amazing midwives and NHS staff.
I have spoken with the CEO of our NHS Trust to seek assurances and clarity on how these risks are being addressed.
I will also be raising the condition of hospital buildings and infrastructure with the Government at the next opportunity in Parliament.