AS USUAL with summer setting in we are being told to use water sparingly.

In the event of a power cut involving electricity or gas the public do not use either and therefore save money.

Surely if we are being denied full access to water supplies should not the public be entitled to a rebate or reduced water bills?

Whether an organisation is private or state controlled make little difference.

The question of water supplies needs careful solutions.

Metering will work in the short term. But if every household installs meters, water usage will fall and the suppliers' income will drop.

An example of this occurred in the Seventies. Following the Yom Kippur war the price of oil quadrupled. At the same time industrial action by the miners forced up the cost of coal.

The new Labour government launched a massive energy-saving campaign urging the public to save energy. The nation obliged and energy consumption fell.

The following year the nationalised energy companies reported a drop in income because of the public using less energy.

The Callaghan administration was operating a pay and prices policy. Despite this, the government allowed the energy suppliers to raise their prices.

So the publics reward was higher costs.

Likewise, following the drought of 1976 many proposals including a national water grid were suggested but never implemented.

The water companies need to improve the infrastructures. In fairness, most of our sewers and water systems stem from Victorian times and were not designed for the sheer volumes of today or the future.

There needs to be proper investment in the nation's water infrastructure.

Richard J Szypulski

Lavender Street

Brighton