A water company is facing criticism from MPs and members of the public for increasing its average bills by 7.1%.

Severn Trent, which supplies water to eight million people in the Midlands, said it had schemes available to support customers who needed it.

But Conservative and Labour MPs from the region said the rise was one of the biggest in the country.

The government said bill rises were carefully scrutinised by a regulator.

Severn Trent said the rise would mean average household bills would increase by £26 per year.

“That’s a big difference,” Peter Lee, from East Leake, in Nottinghamshire, told the BBC.

“We’ll have to start cutting down on other things. Perhaps we won’t go on holiday in future. We’ve got one booked in August but, after that, I really don’t know.

“What we can do about it… I don’t think the government can do a great deal, other than giving rebates and things like that, but who pays for that – us?”

Potato farmers are being forced to trial an ‘expensive’ new irrigation system because water levels are so low that a severe shortage of the vegetable has been predicted.

A lack of rainfall last year and so far this year means that irrigation prospects across the country are low, meaning that new measures are having to be put in place in order to ensure at least some potatoes grow.

The latest information for the Environment Agency shows the chips are down for potato growers; river flows are below normal for this time of year, with irrigation prospects declared “moderate to poor” for many areas.

Prospects for East Anglia, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire are described as “poor”, while the situation in Yorkshire and the East Midlands is “moderate”.

A dry winter and a summer drought last year put increased pressure on water supplies, and there has not since been enough rain to counteract this.

The situation for potatoes could be even graver than it was last year, when restaurants including fast-food outlet Leon were forced to replace potato products with imported sweet potatoes.

A spokesperson from ADHB potatoes said that trials of drip irrigation, a new way to enrich the soil with water, are taking place to safeguard the soil against drought.

England is facing water supply shortages by 2050 unless rapid action is taken to curb water use and wastage, the Environment Agency has warned.

Its new report says enough water to meet the needs of 20 million people is lost through leakage every day.

Population growth and the impact of climate change are expected to add to supply pressures.

The agency wants people to have a personal water target and has urged them to use water more wisely at home.

The study, the first major report on water resources in England, says that population growth and climate change are the biggest pressures on a system that is already struggling.

In rural England water shortages have a far deeper significant impact than the inconvenience of not being able to use a hose pipe. They affect the economic vitality of places very significantly. This article reminds us of how they can also become a political football it tells us:

 Wales should make sure it receives proper payment for any water exported to ease drought-hit areas of England, Welsh politicians and economists have said.

Elfyn Llwyd, the leader of Plaid Cymru at Westminster, led calls for a “mature debate” on ensuringWales is properly paid for one of its richest natural resources. He said he did not object to water being moved fromWales to England. “I see no reason why that should not happen as we are rich in that resource inWales.”

But he added: “I think there should be adequate and reasonable recompense for that provision. I’m not talking of an Opec situation when come sudden droughts to England we get the guns out and say you’ve got to pay twice or three times more. Just a reasonable return on what is being delivered.