open image in gallery Reservoir storage for England has fallen to 69 per cent ( Getty )Water companies that have tried to build reservoirs have struggled. A Water UK spokesperson said: “No new reservoir has been built in more than thirty years because Ofwat and previous governments blocked them. Water companies have finally been given approval to build nine, plus a tenth already under construction at Havant Thicket. We need planning hurdles cleared so we can build reservoirs quickly and we need major reform to ensure we are not in this situation again. The government must step in and stop failing water companies from paying out big bonuses and reverse decades of under-investment.