NEWS

For three years, a once fringe opposition party held just one seat in Japan’s 248-seat upper house.

But on Sunday, Sanseito emerged as one of the biggest winners of Japan’s election – walking away with 14 seats.

The party was born in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, where it gained prominence with YouTube videos that spread conspiracy theories about vaccinations.

More recently, it has built its platform on a nationalist “Japanese First” agenda, warning against a “silent invasion of foreigners”.

Sanseito’s rise in popularity reflects growing unease over immigration and overtourism – issues the ruling government also sought to address with a new committee it created days before the election.

But do these gains signal an enduring shift to the right in Japan?

Launching in early 2020, Sanseito gained attention among conservatives with its series of YouTube videos centred on anti-vaccine and anti-masking rhetoric.

It won its first seat in the upper house in 2022, following a campaign in which it fashioned itself as an “anti-globalist” party. Supporters at rallies spoke of a world where a cabal of globalists and financial institutions were conspiring to lord over powerless citizens.

In its recent campaign, the party made populist pledges such as consumption tax cuts and an increase in child benefits. But it’s been most well known for its nationalist “Japanese First” platform rallying against immigrants, with its leader Sohei Kamiya previously saying that he had drawn inspiration from US President Donald Trump’s “bold political style”.

Sanseito’s promises have won it the support of young conservatives online – cutting into the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) conservative support base.

The weekend’s election result also underscores voters’ frustration with the LDP’s leader and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who has struggled to inspire confidence as Japan struggles against economic headwinds, a cost-of-living crisis and trade negotiations with the United States.

Jeffrey Hall, a lecturer in Japanese Studies at Kanda University of International Studies, says support for more right-wing parties had drawn conservative voters away from the LDP.

“Prime Minister Ishiba is considered not conservative enough by many supporters of the former Prime Minister [Shinzo] Abe,” he says. “They think that he just doesn’t have the nationalistic views on history, he doesn’t have the strong views against China that Abe had.”

Instead, voters are turning to Sanseito and other opposition parties to “vent their frustrations and show the LDP they will pay for turning away from the conservative ideals the party once stood for”, says Rintaro Nishimura, an associate at The Asia Group’s Japan Practice – naming the bill that was passed under Kishida to promote LGBTQ awareness as an example.

“The success of [opposition parties in] this cycle shows that voters are sick of the status quo establishment politics,” he says.

This was also shown in the votes for another small opposition party, the centre right Democratic Party For People, who won 16 seats in Sunday’s election – a big jump from its previous 5 seats.

But for Sanseito, despite its gains this election, it still falls short of the minimum number of seats required to submit budget bills in the upper house. And in the more powerful lower house, it holds just three seats.

Kamiya, 47, was at one point of his political career a member of the long-ruling LDP. During the 2012 general election, the party’s then-president Shinzo Abe personally campaigned on his behalf – though he eventually lost the race.

Kamiya launched Sanseito in March 2020, and was the party’s only candidate to be elected into the upper chamber in 2022.

The former Self-Defence Force reservist has openly credited Trump for shaping his approach, and has railed against the political and financial elite.

Like the US president, Kamiya drew attention with his “often inflammatory and controversial remarks” on the campaign trail, says Mr Nishimura.

“His comments were spread across social media in a very well coordinated campaign,” he says.

“Under globalism, multinational companies have changed Japan’s policies for their own purposes,” Kamiya said at a recent rally in Kagoshima. “If we fail to resist this foreign pressure, Japan will become a colony!”

Earlier this year, he faced backlash after calling gender equality policies a mistake, saying they would encourage women to work and prevent them from having more children.

When asked about the party’s appeal to men, he said it might be due to him being “hot-blooded”, claiming “that resonates more with men”.

However, Mr Nishimura says that exit polls have showed that Sanseito’s support did not come necessarily from just younger men, but that they received consistent support from across the working population, or those aged between 20 to 50.

There was a slant towards male voters, but not “disproportionately so”, added Mr Nishimura.

Following Sunday’s election, Kamiya vowed to secure “50 to 60 seats” in future elections so that “[the party’s] policies will finally become reality”.

He also appeared to try to walk back some of his earlier statements, clarifying in an interview with Nippon TV after the vote that his nationalist policy was not meant to “completely ban foreigners”.

The number of foreign residents in Japan hit a record 3.8 million at the end of 2024. That figure marks an increase up 10.5% from the previous year, according to immigration authorities – but still makes up just 3% of the country’s total population.

Tourist numbers also hit an all-time high of about 36.9 million last year, according to the National Tourism Organisation.

Sanseito has seized on the growing unease over immigration, blaming the ruling LDP for policies that have allowed more foreigners into the country.

Anti-immigration rhetoric often surfaces in countries dealing with a weakening economy, says Mr Hall.

“Misbehaviour and bad manners by some tourists” have added fuel to the fire, creating an impression of a “big foreign problem”, he adds.

“[Sanseito] tapped into the frustration over immigration and the perhaps unwarranted feeling that immigrants were rising too much in number,” he says.

Japan has traditionally been wary of immigration, but faced with an ageing population, the government had eased immigration laws in recent years in an effort to boost manpower.

Some Japanese people have been frustrated by the influx of foreigners and have blamed them for rising crime and inflation, among other things.

On Tuesday, less than a week before the election, authorities set up a new committee aimed at easing citizens’ concerns, pledging to shape a “society of orderly and harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals.”

But it now appears to have come too late – and Sanseito’s ascent may signal a turning point in Japan’s political landscape.

“I think for years now, people said Japan doesn’t have a populist right, or doesn’t have a populist far right,” says Mr Hall. “But I think [the result] has proven that there is a possibility for this to happen in Japan, and it’s probably here to stay.”

However, Mr Nishimura notes that it has been “notoriously hard” for populist parties to firmly establish themselves as a presence in Japanese politics because of the “fickle” electorate.

“If they see that a party they supported isn’t living up to their expectations, they will revert to the established choices or move onto newer alternatives.”

A national inquiry will be held into one of the most violent days of the year-long miners’ strike in the 1980s, the government has announced.

The inquiry will look into the clash that involved police and miners outside the Orgreave coking plant in Rotherham on 18 June 1984.

The incident, which became known as the Battle of Orgreave, involved miners from across Britain converging on the plant to try to disrupt deliveries, but they were met with force by thousands of police officers.

Joe Rollin, from the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign, has been calling for an inquiry for 13 years. He said he was “cautiously elated” by the news.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, who announced the inquiry, said those affected by the confrontation had had “unanswered questions for over 40 years”.

She said the inquiry had been put “in our Labour manifesto last year and that’s what we’re now delivering”.

The inquiry will be chaired by the Bishop of Sheffield, the Rt Rev Dr Pete Wilcox, and will look at both the events of the day and the aftermath, Ms Cooper said.

That will include the eventually failed criminal prosecutions of 95 miners and what Ms Cooper described as the “discredited evidence” against them.

The incident was sparked after the National Coal Board (NCB) announced in March 1984 that it was shutting 20 UK collieries it said were unprofitable.

This resulted in the loss of at least 20,000 jobs.

More than three quarters of the country’s 187,000 miners went on strike in response to the announcement.

On the day of the clashes in June, the striking miners wanted to stop lorries carrying coke to fuel the Scunthorpe steel furnaces as they thought disrupting production would help win their fight against the closures and job losses.

But violent clashes between police and the miners left more than 100 picketers and officers injured at the coking plant.

A total of 95 men who had been picketing at the plant were arrested and faced trial on riot and unlawful assembly charges.

However, the case against them collapsed in court due to allegations that South Yorkshire Police had falsified evidence.

Many of those involved have said that even 40 years on, they want answers about what happened and why.

It is still considered one of the most violent episodes in British industrial history.

In 2016, the then home secretary, Amber Rudd, rejected calls for an inquiry into events at Orgreave, saying it would not be in the public interest.

She said even though miners who were involved gave “forceful accounts” about its lasting impact on them, “ultimately there were no deaths or wrongful convictions”.

Mr Rollin said he and other members of the Truth and Justice Campaign were “really happy and we want to get to the truth”.

“It’s been a long slog these last 13 years and we can’t quite believe it,” he said.

“We want all the people who live around the country in mining communities that have been so badly treated to have a smile on their faces.

“This has been a hard-fought thing and thank you to everyone who’s supported us.”

Rotherham Labour MP Sarah Champion said former miners, their families and campaigners had worked “tirelessly” to secure an inquiry.

She said: “I have stood shoulder to shoulder with campaigners over the years as they were led to believe an inquiry was about to be commissioned, only to have the rug pulled out from under them.

“They have been let down time and time again, and I am proud that our Labour government is good to its word and will finally uncover the truth.”

South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said the announcement of the inquiry was a “landmark moment for justice and accountability”.

“We owe it to the miners, their families, and our communities to ensure that the events of Orgreave are finally understood,” he said.

South Yorkshire Police said it would “fully cooperate with the inquiry in a bid to help those affected find answers”.

Six people have been arrested during the latest protest outside a hotel used to house asylum seekers in Essex.

Bottles and smoke flares were thrown towards police vehicles during the demonstration which saw more than 1,000 people gathered at the site of the Bell Hotel in Epping.

Ch Supt Simon Anslow said it was disappointing to see the protest escalate into “mindless thuggery”.

The disorder followed the arrest and charge of an asylum seeker last week on suspicion of alleged sexual assaults in the town.

“Our cells, which have been filling up throughout the evening, are ready for you,” Ch Supt Anslow warned in a statement.

“I think I speak for all of us – including the people of Epping – when I say we’ve had enough of your criminality,” he added.

Police put in place a Section 35 dispersal order to “prevent further crime or anti-social behaviour” overnight.

Demonstrators on Sunday chanted “send them home” and “save our kids”, as projectiles were thrown towards police vans blocking the entrance to the hotel.

Many had travelled from across the UK, with one woman from Scotland telling the BBC she felt compelled to “support local people and get the asylum seekers out”.

Police also surrounded a counter-protester, an elderly woman, before escorting her out of the area as masked protesters followed her and shouted abuse.

Unrest at the site on Thursday led to three arrests after eight police officers were injured.

Plans for Sunday’s protest prompted Essex Police to announce a section 60AA order requiring the removal of face coverings until 04:00 on Monday.

One man was earlier charged with violent disorder and criminal damage following previous clashes outside the hotel.

A spokesperson for the force added: “We will deal robustly and quickly with anyone intent on coming into Epping to commit selfish criminal behaviour.

“The right to peaceful protest is protected by law and allows everyone freedom of expression, but this must be done respectfully and if there is a risk to public order we will act appropriately.”

The order is in place around Epping including its tube station.

Thursday’s demonstration was one of a series of protests outside the hotel since 38-year-old asylum seeker Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu was charged with sexual assault – after an incident where he is alleged to have attempted to kiss a 14-year-old girl.

He denied the charge when he appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.

Morgan Birch was puzzled when her four-month-old daughter, Kimie, suddenly fell ill with a fever and rash.

At first, the Alberta mother assumed it was a common side effect of immunisations – or perhaps a case of chicken pox. Ms Birch then consulted her 78-year-old grandmother, who recognised Kimie’s illness immediately.

“That’s measles,” her grandmother said. Ms Birch was stunned, as she thought the disease had been eradicated.

A lab test later confirmed her grandmother’s hypothesis: Kimie had measles, likely contracted after a routine visit to the hospital in the Edmonton area a few weeks earlier.

Kimie is one of more than 3,800 in Canada who have been infected with measles in 2025, most of them children and infants. That figure is nearly three times higher than the number of confirmed US cases, despite Canada’s far smaller population.

Now Canada is the only western country listed among the top 10 with measles outbreaks, according to CDC data, ranking at number eight. Alberta, the province at the epicentre of the current outbreak, has the highest per capita measles spread rate in North America.

The data raises questions on why the virus is spreading more rapidly in Canada than in the US, and whether Canadian health authorities are doing enough to contain it.

In the US, the rise of measles has been partly linked to vaccine-hesitant public figures, like Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr – although he has since endorsed the measles vaccine as safe.

But Canada does not have a prominent RFK Jr-like figure in public health, noted Maxwell Smith, a postdoctoral fellow in public health at Western University in southern Ontario.

“There are other things that need to be interrogated here I think,” Dr Smith said. “Looking at the Canadian context adds another layer of complexity to this.”

Measles overall is on the rise in North America, Europe and the UK. Cases in the US reached a 33-year high this year, while England reported nearly 3,000 confirmed infections in 2024, its highest count since 2012.

Canada’s 2025 figures have surpassed both. The country has not seen this many measles cases since the illness was declared eliminated in 1998. Before this year, the last peak was in 2011, when about 750 cases were reported.

The MMR vaccine is the most effective way to fight off measles, a highly contagious and dangerous virus, which can lead to pneumonia, brain swelling and death. The jabs are 97% effective and also immunise against mumps and rubella.

The hardest-hit provinces have been Ontario and Alberta, followed by Manitoba.

In Ontario, health authorities say the outbreak began in late 2024, when an individual contracted measles at a large Mennonite gathering in New Brunswick and then returned home.

Mennonites are a Christian group with roots in 16th-Century Germany and Holland, who have since settled in other parts of the world, including Canada, Mexico and the US.

Some live modern lifestyles, while conservative groups lead simpler lives, limiting the use of technology and relying on modern medicine only when necessary.

In Ontario, the illness primarily spread among Low German-speaking Mennonite communities in the province’s southwest, where vaccination rates have historically been lower due to some members’ religious or cultural beliefs against immunisation.

Almost all those infected were unvaccinated, according to data from Public Health Ontario.

Catalina Friesen, a healthcare worker at a mobile clinic serving the Mennonite population near Aylmer, Ontario, said she first became aware of the outbreak in February, when a woman and her five-year-old child came in with what appeared to be an ear infection. It later turned out to be a symptom of measles.

“This is the first time I’ve ever seen measles within our community,” Ms Friesen told the BBC.

Cases spread rapidly from that point, reaching a peak of more than 200 a week across Ontario by late April.

While new confirmed cases have since dropped sharply in Ontario, Alberta has emerged as the next hotspot. There, the spread happened so quickly that health officials were unable to pinpoint exactly how or where the outbreak began, said Dr Vivien Suttorp, the medical officer of health in southern Alberta, where cases are the highest.

She, too, said she had not seen an outbreak this bad in her 18 years working in public health.

Ms Friesen noted that Canada has a higher concentration of conservative Low German-speaking Mennonites than the US, which may be a factor behind the higher number of cases.

But Mennonites are not a monolith, she said, and many have embraced vaccinations. What’s changed is the rapid spread of anti-vaccine misinformation both in her community and beyond after the Covid-19 pandemic.

“There’s hearsay that immunisations are bad for you,” Ms Friesen said, or are “dangerous”.

This is amplified by a general distrust in the healthcare system, which she said has historically ostracised members of her community.

“We are sometimes put down or looked down upon because of our background,” she said, adding that she herself has experienced discrimination in hospitals based on assumptions about her beliefs.

Experts say it’s tough to pinpoint why measles have spread wider in Canada than in the US, but many agree that cases in both countries are likely underreported.

“The numbers that we have in Alberta are just the tip of the iceberg,” said Dr Suttorp.

But there is one big reason driving the outbreak: low vaccination rates, said Janna Shapiro, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Vaccine Preventable Diseases.

Dr Shapiro said there is “an element of chance” at play, where a virus is introduced to a community by accident and spreads among those who are unprotected.

“The only thing that is going to stop an outbreak is getting those vaccination rates up,” she said. “If the public is not willing to get vaccinated, then it will continue until the virus can’t find anymore receptible hosts.”

In general, studies show that vaccine hesitancy has risen in Canada since the pandemic, and the data reflects that. In southern Alberta, for example, the number of MMR vaccines administered has dropped by nearly half from 2019 to 2024, according to provincial figures.

Covid-19 vaccine mandates were fiercely opposed by some during the pandemic, prompting the so-called “Freedom Convoy” protest in Ottawa where truckers gridlocked the city for two weeks in 2021.

That opposition has since expanded to other vaccines, said Dr Shapiro.

Pandemic-related disruptions also left some children behind on routine immunisations. With measles having been largely eliminated, families likely did not prioritise getting their kids’ vaccinations up to date, Dr Shapiro said.

That is not the case for Ms Birch, who began routine immunisations for her baby Kimie as soon as she was eligible. But Kimie was still too young for the measles vaccine, which is typically given at 12 months in Alberta.

Dr Suttorp said Alberta has since lowered that age cap in response to the recent outbreak, and there has been an uptick in people taking the vaccine.

Health units across the country have also tried to encourage people to get vaccinated through public bulletins and radio advertisements. But the response is notably more muted than that during the Covid-19 pandemic, health officials say.

Kimie has since slowly recovered, Ms Birch said, though she continues to be monitored for potential long-term effects of the virus.

The Alberta mother said she was saddened and horrified when she learned her daughter had measles, but also “frustrated and annoyed” at those choosing not to vaccinate their children.

She called on people to heed public health guidelines and “protect the ones that can’t protect themselves”.

“My four-month-old shouldn’t have gotten measles in 2025,” Ms Birch said.

People retiring in 2050 will be worse off than pensioners today, the government has warned, unless action is taken to boost retirement savings.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is reviving the Pensions Commission, which first reported nearly 20 years ago, to look at how to tackle the issue.

Almost half of working-age adults are not putting any money into a private pension at all, with low earners and the self-employed less likely to be pension saving, the DWP said.

The shortfall is also worse among women and some ethnic groups, with only one-in-four people of Pakistani or Bangladeshi background saving in a private pension.

People drawing their pension 25 years from now are set to be £800 or 8% worse off per year than their counterparts today, the department said, with four in 10 people currently not saving enough for their retirement.

Rather than launching a new commission from scratch, the government said it was reviving the “landmark” Turner Pension Commission which reported in 2006, under the last Labour government, and led to the roll-out of automatic enrolment into pension saving. As a result 88% of eligible employees are now saving, up from 55% in 2012, the DWP said.

Despite that progress, the DWP said new analysis revealed “stark” findings including that:

• more than three million self-employed workers are not saving into a pension
• only one-in-four low earners in the private sector are saving into a pension
• only one-in-four of people of Pakistani or Bangladeshi heritage are saving

The analysis also found a 48% gender gap in private pension wealth among people currently retiring, with a typical woman receiving just over £100 a week and a man receiving £200 from private pension income.

The commission is not designed to directly address issues around the cost of the state pension.

Recent reports have raised questions over the affordability of the “triple lock”, introduced in 2010, which guarantees that state pensions will rise every year by the same amount as average wages, inflation, or 2.5%, whichever is higher.

As the population ages, and people live longer, the cost of that policy is set to grow significantly.

Its cost is forecast to be three times higher by the end of the decade than was original estimated, after successive years of high inflation, followed by strong wage growth.

Instead, the relaunched Commission, which will report in 2027, will look at savings in private sector pensions.

It will bring together trades unions, employers and independent experts, some of whom also took part in the original Commission. It will look at what is preventing people from putting more into their retirement pots and will aim to build a national consensus around future strategy.

Kate Smith, head of pensions at pension firm Aegon, urged the Commission to make “bold, brave and possibly unpalatable recommendations”, including “significant increases” to auto-enrolment contributions after 2029.

Paul Nowak, General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress described it as “a vital step forward”.

“Everyone deserves dignity and security in retirement, but right now many workers – especially those in the private sector – will find themselves without enough to get by on,” he said.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director of Age UK said that while the state pension provided the bulk of income for most pensioners, it was “hugely important” to consider the role of private savings, as the current system was leaving many pensioners struggling to make ends meet.

“Hopefully this can be avoided in future and particularly disadvantaged groups, including low-paid women and self-employed people on low incomes, can be helped to put money aside when appropriate for them to do so,” she said.

Catherine Foot, director of the think tank Standard Life Centre for the Future of Retirement, said that 17 million people were not saving enough to achieve the retirement they wished to have.

“The next two decades is when the effects of the savings crisis will really start to bite,” she said.

It was crucial that the Commission was able to take a step back and view the system in its entirety,” she added.

“There’s an opportunity to examine how different elements of the system are working together.”

At the age of 75, Stevie Wonder is still going strong.

His latest UK tour, which wrapped up earlier this month received rapturous reviews, with critics calling the star “fresh and on form” for “a riotously joyful celebration” of his music.

But while contemporaries like Billy Joel and The Eagles are reducing their musical commitments, Wonder says he will never consider retiring.

“For as long as you breathe, for as long as your heart beats, there’s more for you to do,” the Motown legend told the BBC’s Sidetracked podcast. “I’m not gonna stop the gift that keeps pouring through my body.

“I love doing what I’m doing. An artist never stops drawing. As long as you can imagine is as long as you are going to be creative.”

The star also confirmed he was still working on a new album, titled Through The Eyes Of Wonder, which he first discussed in 2008.

The project has previously been described as a performance piece that will reflect his experience as a blind man.

It would be his first studio album since 2005’s A Time To Love; extending a recording career that started in 1962, when he was just 11 years old.

Wonder spoke to Sidetracked presenter Annie Macmanus, the day before he headlined the BST festival in London’s Hyde Park – playing a two-and-a-half hour set that encompassed his biggest hits, from Superstition and Isn’t She Lovely to You Are The Sunshine Of My Life and I Wish.

Most of the set was drawn from the 1970s purple patch when he won the Grammy Award for best album three times in a row, for Innervisions, Fulfillingness’ First Finale and Songs In The Key Of Life.

Wonder told Macmanus that he never tired of revisiting those records.

“Songs are like children, they’re with you forever,” he said. “They are statement from the spirit within you.

“And singing those songs is like me taking another breath.”

Earlier this month, during a concert in Cardiff, the musician addressed a long-standing conspiracy theory that he is not actually blind.

“You know there have been rumours about me seeing and all that?” he told the audience, “But seriously, you know the truth.”

“Truth is, shortly after my birth, I became blind,” he told fans.

Calling his disability a gift, Wonder continued: “Now, that was a blessing because it’s allowed me to see the world in the vision of truth, of sight.”

In his Sidetracked interview, the singer talked about the importance of using music to spread positivity and speak truth to power.

Throughout his life, he has been a vocal civil rights campaigner, and played a key role in the campaign to have the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr recognised as a national holiday in the US.

Wonder, who campaigned for Democrat Kamala Harris in last year’s US presidential election, told Macmanus that America was currently beleaguered by “people trying to go backwards”.

“It’s not gonna go down like that,” he insisted. “I think that if you look back in history, there’s always been a point when people wake up.

“And I think that, for those who think it is gonna go down like that, remember that God is watching you.”

You can listen to Stevie Wonder’s full interview on the Sidetracked podcast on BBC Sounds.

A new ombudsman will tackle leaky pipes, incorrect bills and other issues people have with water companies, the government has annnounced.

The new consumer champion is being launched as part of wider plans to overhaul the industry, due to be announced later, following public outcry over rising bills and an increase in sewage discharges into UK waterways.

The way the sector is regulated is expected to change significantly, especially after the Water Commission gives its review of the industry on Monday.

Environment Secretary Steve Reed has already vowed to halve the number of times water firms discharge sewage by 2030 – the first time the government has set a clear target for pollution spills.

He used an interview on the BBC on Sunday to pave the way for far-reaching reforms, describing the sector as “broken” and its regulator as “clearly failing”.

Reed said voters could hold him accountable if there had not been improvements in water quality come the next election.

But he stopped short of saying whether Ofwat might be axed altogether – something that could be recommended by the Water Commission in its Monday report.

Former Undertones frontman, Feargal Sharkey, a leading campaigner for cleaner waterways, said he feared the report would not be radical enough to solve the problems facing the sector and would turn out to be a disappointing “flat pancake”.

The latest announcement means the water industry will have a consumer watchdog that will serve as a single point of contact for consumers with complaints, bringing it in line with other utilities.

The plan will also see an expanded role for the Consumer Council for Water (CCW), the public body that currently takes on complaints.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) was unable to put a timescale on the plans for a new ombudsman, but said it would have legal powers to protect customers who are in dispute with their water company.

The state of the UK’s waterways and the role of the private companies managing the nation’s water supply has been the subject of fierce public debate, with widespread calls for the government to take a greater role and bring in tougher regulations.

The sector requires vast infrastructure updates in the face of a growing population and the impact of more extreme weather as the result of climate change.

Water firms have faced criticism for under-investing in the systems they manage, all while paying out millions to executives and shareholders.

Meanwhile, the number of times water companies discharged sewage into England’s waterways rose to a record of 2,801 instances, Environment Agency data published on Friday showed.

Reed said he had spoken to people “up and down the country” who were “furious about the state of our water”.

A survey by the CCW in May found trust in water companies had declined, with just 35% of respondents saying they felt satisfied with what their provider was doing to protect the environment.

A record £104bn is due to be invested in the water sector over the next five years to improve its infrastructure.

As a result, consumer bills are expected to rise on average by £123 annually – though for Southern Water customers this could be as much as £224.

Victoria Atkins, the shadow environment secretary, welcomed the plan to create a new ombudsman in principle, but said it would only play a small part in solving the water industry’s long-term problems.

“We all want the water system to improve, and honesty about the scale of the challenge is essential,” she said.

Atkins added that the government needed to explain where investment would come from and how reforming or replacing Ofwat would succeed in cleaning up rivers and lakes.

Liberal Democrats environment spokesperson Tim Farron MP said: “To effectively tackle the sewage scandal, we need fundamental change, not another layer of bureaucracy.”

But he added that a new ombudsman may provide a means of redress for consumers “who for too long have been forced to foot the bill for failing water companies”.

Bedouin fighters positioned outside the southern Syrian city of Suweida have told the BBC they will observe a ceasefire with the Druze community there, but have not ruled out resuming hostilities.

The Bedouin fighters have retreated from the city to surrounding villages in the province after a week of deadly sectarian clashes between Druze fighters, Bedouins and government forces, with Israel carrying out air strikes in support of the Druze.

On Sunday a UK-based monitoring group said there was a “cautious calm” in the region – but later said tribal fighters had attacked villages.

From the town of al-Mazara’a – a Druze town until last week when it was taken over by the Bedouin and now under Syrian government control – smoke could be seen across the fields rising from Suweida city.

At a nearby checkpoint a mound of dirt cut across the road. Dozens of government security personnel were standing along it, all heavily armed and blocking the Bedouin from re-entering the city.

Hundreds of Bedouin fighters, many firing guns into the air, crowded the road.

They want the release of injured Bedouin people still in the city of Suweida, who they refer to as hostages. Otherwise, they say, they will force their way past the checkpoint and head back into the city.

“We did what the government have ordered us and we are committed to the agreement, and the government words and we came back, Suweida is 35km far from here,” a tribal elder told the BBC.

“Currently our hostages and wounded are there, they are refusing to give us anyone… If they don’t commit to the agreement we are going to enter again, even if Suweida will become our cemetery.”

Long-running tensions between Druze and Bedouin tribes erupted into deadly sectarian clashes a week ago, after the abduction of a Druze merchant on the road to the capital Damascus.

Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government responded by deploying forces to the city. Druze residents of Suweida told the BBC they had witnessed “barbaric acts” as gunmen – government forces and foreign fighters – attacked people. Israel targeted these forces, saying they were acting to protect the Druze.

Government forces withdrew and Druze and Bedouin fighters subsequently clashed. Both Druze and Bedouin fighters have been accused of atrocities over the past seven days, as well as members of the security forces and individuals affiliated with the interim government.

On Saturday, al-Sharaa announced a ceasefire and sent security forces to Suweida to end the fighting.

Local Druze fighters are once again in control of the city. But more than 1,120 people have been killed, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said.

The dead included 427 Druze fighters and 298 Druze civilians, 194 of whom were “summarily executed by defence and interior ministry personnel”, the monitor said.

Meanwhile 354 government security personnel and 21 Sunni Bedouin were also killed, three of them civilians who it said were “summarily executed by Druze fighters”. Another 15 government troops were killed in Israeli strikes, it said.

At least 128,000 people have been displaced by the violence, the UN migration agency said on Sunday. Suweida city has a severe medical supply shortage, the SOHR said.

A first humanitarian convoy from the Syrian Red Crescent has reportedly reached the city. Israel’s public broadcaster reported that Israel had sent medical aid to the Druze.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio meanwhile has demanded that the government “hold accountable and bring to justice anyone guilty of atrocities including those in their own ranks” to preserve the possibility of a united and peaceful Syria.

In Mia’rbah, south-west of Suweida, Bedouin refugees gathered at what used to be a school. The village still bore the scars from years of civil war, with buildings lying in ruins and strewn with bullet holes.

At the aid distribution centres elderly Bedouin women collected water from a tank on the back of the truck. Most of the people there were women and children.

Asked whether she thought Bedouin and Druze could live together, one woman displaced from Suweida city said it would depend on the government in Damascus.

“They can live together if the government will take over and rule, and if the government will provide peace and security,” she said.

In the absence of government authority, she said she believed that Bedouin could not trust the Druze.

“They are traitors, without peace and security we can’t live with them,” she said.

Additional reporting by Jack Burgess