Thames Water urged to ‘get a grip’ on testing water supply after illness outbreak

Exclusive: Labour calls on firm to urgently test treatment works after dozens in south-east London experience vomiting and diarrhoea

• UK politics live - latest updates

Steve Reed, Labour's shadow environment secretary, has urged Thames Water to get a grip" and test treatment works urgently" after it emerged over the weekend that the company had tested the water at only one property.

Over the last two weeks, dozens of people in Beckenham, south-east London, have reported becoming unwell with diarrhoea and vomiting. The symptoms in most cases have lasted for an unusually long time - up to two weeks. They have also been severe, with multiple people hospitalised, including an eight-year-old boy.