THE boss of a profiteering water company which has been fined millions for pumping raw sewage into rivers is advising the government on environmental issues, it was revealed today.

Liv Garfield is paid almost £4 million a year as chief executive of Severn Trent Water.

She is also Council for Sustainable Business chairwoman which advises the government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) on water, waste, and biodiversity.

In 2021, Severn Trent was fined £1.5m for illegally discharging 360,000 litres of raw sewage in Worcestershire, and in 2019 was fined £500,000 for flooding a Birmingham park with sewage.

The River Severn tops a list of the most polluted rivers in England and Wales.

Norwich MP Clive Lewis, who is a member of the environmental audit committee, said: “When the government takes environmental advice from the very people who are responsible for environmental damage it is clear our political institutions are in a state of deep-rooted system failure.”

A Defra spokesperson said: “The appointment of the chair and members of the Council for Sustainable Business are agreed by the Environment Secretary at the time.”