E.coli bug found in 11% of private water supplies

Eleven per cent of private water supplies failed tests for E.coli.

Concerns have been raised about the "poor quality" of private water supplies in Scotland after tests found the E.coli bug present in more than one in 10 of them.

Quality checks on private water supplies used by businesses or serving more than 50 people found 11% did not comply with expected standards.

But the proportion failing checks for E.coli - which can cause stomach pains, vomiting and nausea - has not changed in the last three years, leading to concerns not enough is being done to make private drinking water supplies safe.

Drinking Water Quality Regulator Sue Petch said: "I am concerned with the poor quality of private water supplies, particularly the number that tested positive for E.coli and the health risks that its presence indicates.

"There is much that people responsible for a private water supply can do to protect water sources and ensure that there is an appropriate and robust treatment process in place together with a plan to ensure that this continues to be the case under all circumstances."