To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many permanent abstraction licences have been amended to make them time-limited since the Water Act 2003 was introduced; and how many of those amendments were taken voluntarily. (142180)

Six abstraction licences have had time limited status since regulations were introduced in April 2006. These covered apportionment (splitting) of permanent abstraction licences that ‘change hands’.

Nine permanent abstraction licences have been voluntarily converted to time limited status since the Water Act 2003.

The Environment Agency has converted 24 of its own abstraction licences to time limited status.