WEST Worcestershire MP Sir Michael Spicer is getting involved in the wrangle between Kempsey residents and Severn Trent Water.

The MP has hit out at the company's handling of problems which have meant water in the village is undrinkable.

The water has been full of sandy deposits since the beginning of May, when a new pipe was fitted.

Work has been undertaken by Severn Trent over the past few weeks to flush the pipes through, but Sir Michael is adamant more needs to be done.

He is now threatening to bring the matter up with regulatory body OFWAT.

"There are something like 1,400 houses which have filthy water coming out of their taps, but it would seem Severn Trent have been extremely incompetent in the way they have dealt with the public," he said.

"They have given no public information about what the problem is or how it is going to be solved, and only a few families who have complained have been supplied with bottled water.

"I shall certainly be taking this matter up as a major complaint against the company with the ombudsman.

"The situation is quite unacceptable, and I hope it is resolved as quickly as possible."

Sir Michael has listed a number of complaints he has received from worried residents, including bad treatment by rude and unhelpful customer service assistants.

A spokeswoman for Severn Trent Water said a major flushing programme had been undertaken this weekend, and was confident this would solve the problem once and for all.

"Once again we would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused - it has taken a little longer than we would have liked to solve the problem," she said.