In the city built on a Spa, councillors ban bottled water... but campaigners want more. Every politician needs a bit of luck, and this week, Councillor Sarah Bevan struck gold. She is a LibDem in a council run by Tories and for several weeks she had been working on a proposal to rid her town hall of bottled water. We all know the arguments - plastic bottles gobble up oil and fill up rubbish heaps after just one swig. ANd half the water is shipped round the world from countries that have no clean water of their own.  | Cost of bottled water and water coolers (2006-7) Council Bristol �42,987 Swindon �34,668 Wiltshire �18,932 Bath & North East Somerset �17,443 Gloucestershire �15,441 North Somerset �15,107 South Gloucestershire �12,000 (moving from bottled water to mains) Somerset �5,760 (mains-fed coolers) |
Media exposure But Sarah's luck was timing. The day before her motion came before full council, Panorama turned the spotlight on the bottled water business. A minister called it "immoral". The programme unearthed council bottled water bills running into thousands of pounds. In Bath and North East Somerset, it cost taxpayers �17,433 in 2007. But most importantly, it made Sarah's opposition motion front-page news. Her motion was carried by 32 votes to 29. "It will save local taxpayers money, and it will help save the planet," said Sarah. Council at '6s and 7s'  Great stonework, but no water... Kirsten wants the taps on |
The conservatives run the council, but do not have an outright majority, and ironically now find themselves having to implement a policy that many of them voted against. So is that it? Not a bit of it. Outside Bath's Guildhall, we met another water campaigner. Kirsten Elliot is an historian and city guide, and she has an ornate Victorian solution to our very modern social problem. "Bring our water fountains back to life!" she cries. "People all drink out of these water bottles because they can't get a drink when they're out and about. "But the city is dotted with water fountains which were once beautiful and useful. Why not switch them back on?" Fountain tour So we go on a water fountain tour and see some of Bath's finest. | Enter the world of the City of Bath's dry fountains... 
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The city, of course, is built on water - and still famous for it. Will councillors buy Kirsten's campaign and get the ornate old fountains gushing once again? For that, Sarah will need another big run of political luck. What do you think? Should we reconnect all the old water fountains? Or just let them crumble? Tell us what you think here, and see the debate unfold on the Politics Show. Watch the Politics Show on TV with Jon Sopel and David Garmston on BBC One, 12:00 GMT, Sunday 24 February 2008 ...or click the latest programme button at the top of this page.
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