The owner of South West Water has returned to profit after rising water bills and a hot summer helped boost its sales by more than a quarter.

Pennon, which also owns Bristol Water, Bournemouth Water and SES Water, revealed the improved financial performance despite coming under fire for wastewater spills earlier this year.

The London-listed business told investors it made a pre-tax profit of £65.9 million for the six months to the end of September, swinging from a loss of £38.8 million the prior year.

Water revenues soared by 26% year-on-year, to £519 million, which it said was driven by tariff increases and higher demand over the hot summer months.

Water bills rose for many households in England and Wales from April.

This reflected higher prices for suppliers and to help pay for

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