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Experts in the field of hydration gathered this month at an event jointly sponsored by Water UK and the Royal Society of Medicine. The conference was well attended and the discussion wide-ranging. Even though there was general agreement that sugar-based drinks were a cause of many problems in modern society, there was no consensus on what fluid should be used to hydrate - water, tea, juice or even wine.

The UK water industry is fully committed to delivering essential infrastructure and supporting the government's National Infrastructure Plan. However, water supply and availability needs to be at the heart of our decision-making for communities, businesses and agriculture - we can no longer just assume water will be there when and where we need it.

When companies invest for the future, they can defer - but not avoid - corporation tax due to the tax relief on capital allowances.

Water companies understand that some of their customers are facing cost-of-living pressures. This is why the industry spends millions of pounds every year to give struggling households money off their water bills and offers a wide range of extra support and advice measures.

Figures released from Defra show that this year, 605 out 610 bathing sites met the mandatory standards set by the European Commission. The water industry plays a key role in keeping beaches free from pollution by ensuring that water returned to the environment is as clean as possible.

Water UK is working with The Royal Society of Medicine to develop the CPD accredited Water, Hydration and Health Conference on Tuesday 2 December in London. Bringing together health professionals, industry leaders, the regulator, government bodies and other stakeholders, the evidence-based programme will examine the importance of hydration and drinking water quality to the nation’s health.

Water UK is leading the debate in Europe on options available to address the growing concerns about the prevalence of pharmaceuticals. At present, we believe it is not practical to set formal regulatory standards for pharmaceutical residues in water (either for raw water or tap water) until further research on costs and benefits, supported by robust science, becomes available.

Water companies are playing a key role in ensuring the quality of water around Britain’s coasts remains consistently high

Drinking water in the UK is among the very best in the world and any further EU intervention could lead to unnecessary extra costs to customers. In response to the latest EU consultation on the Drinking Water Directive, Water UK said any future changes to drinking water quality standards must be based on robust scientific evidence of risks to human health.

The latest Consumer Council for Water data shows that complaints against companies have fallen for the sixth year in a row. Companies' hard work to drive service improvements is leading to better outcomes for customers and the industry will continue in its determination to provide the very best services and drive down complaints even further.

Customers having difficulty paying their bills should speak to their water company to find out the range of help that is available. Water UK supports the CCWater call for customers who are struggling to pay to ask their company for help.

The European Commission is considering measures to control the levels and types of pharmaceuticals and chemicals in the environment and water. The Commission believes there could be risks to public health, although there is currently no robust scientific data about how serious the risks are. Water UK is concerned that the Commission could decide more stringent sewerage treatment is the answer, which could lead to substantial extra costs for companies and customers.