Andrew RT Davies has said the salary of the new Welsh Water Chief Executive must be “sensible” after the water firm announced its new head.

On Wednesday, Welsh Water confirmed the appointment of Roch Cheroux as its new Chief Executive. Cheroux has previously been the Chief Executive at Sydney Water, and Welsh Water says he is “widely respected for his focus on sustainability, customer service, and operational excellence.”

The previous Chief Executive of the not-for-profit provider, Peter Perry, received £892,000 in total remuneration in 2021. Earlier this year, figures showed the water company had released sewage into rivers, lakes and the sea for more than 968,000 hours last year.

In April, bills for Welsh Water customers rose by 27 per cent.

Andrew RT Davies has called for the head’s pay to be “more closely linked with performance on issues like sewage and water bills.”

Andrew RT Davies MS, Senedd Member for South Wales Central and former Leader of the Welsh Conservatives, said:

“I wish the new boss of Welsh Water well, and he has a significant job ahead of him to get the provider into a position where it can command public confidence.

“As it stands, with the poor performance of Welsh Water, and with water bills rising, many people in Wales don’t believe the head of this organisation should be taking home hundreds of thousands of pounds a year.

“With people across Wales struggling to make ends meet, I believe that the pay for the top brass should be more closely linked with performance on issues like sewage leaks and water bills.”