Drought could be just 20 years away unless action is taken to tackle climate change's impact on water resources, a report warned today.
Some parts of England, especially the South East, risk running out of water because of less rainfall and a need to slash the amount taken from streams, rivers and lakes, according to the National Audit Office.
Water firms will have to cut the volume they remove by more than a billion litres a day - creating huge shortfalls in the coming decades, the spending watchdog said.
It predicted four billion litres of additional water supply will be needed per day by 2050 to counter the growing risk of drought from climate change.
The country's total water supply is forecast to drop by 7% by 2045.
NAO figures show the daily demand for water in England and Wales stands at 14 billion litres, with the equivalent of three billion litres lost through leakage.
People use an average 143 litres of water every 24 hours.
NAO chief Gareth Davies said: "The Government has made limited progress reducing water consumption, tackling leakage and sharing water resources between regions in the last five years, but rapid progress is now vital for the Government to deliver its objective of a resilient water supply.
"Defra (Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) needs to provide stronger leadership to water companies, regulators and consumers."
The report states that water companies over the past five years have made little or no progress in reducing water consumption and stopping leaks.
The NAO urged the Government to monitor progress on the water suppliers' pledge to reduce leakage by at least 15% by 2025.
A Defra spokesman said: “We thank the NAO for this report as an important contribution to our work to meet our future water needs.
“We recognise that we need to work harder than ever to ensure that we all have enough water in the future and that is why we are already working towards many of the report’s recommendations.
“The recently published National Framework for Water Resources sets out a bold vision for bringing together consumers, businesses and industry to safeguard the future of our water resources while ensuring that our natural environment is protected for future generations.”
