The chief executive of United Utilities also said she was “alive to the issues of trust and transparency” in the water sector after receiving a £1.4 million pay packet last year.
Chief executive Louise Beardmore said that the company needed to rebuild trust in the North West after the scandal, and following an increase in pollution incidents last year.
The water firm behind historic sewage spills in the UK’s Lake Windermere has said issues cannot be fixed “instantly”, as heavy rainfall and storms in the North West of England have driven more flooding incidents.
The boss took home a pay packet of £1.4 million last year, made up of a base salary worth £690,000, plus benefits, bonuses and long-term share awards.
Last year, the company was accused of failing to report more than 100 million litres of untreated sewage that it illegally dumped into Windermere over a three-year period.
