A pensioner struggling with ill health is being hauled before a court by a water company for refusing to pay his bill.

Retired magistrate Chris Stanley, from Whitstable, will appear in the dock later this month for withholding part of his bill in protest over sewage discharges made by Southern Water.

South East Water, responsible for the drinking supply and issuing bills on behalf of both firms, has launched legal action against the 82-year-old.

Mr Stanley told KentOnline: “I don’t want this hassle, but I do believe this [pollution] is all wrong and someone has to make a stand.”

Southern Water was found to have released more than 200 sewage discharges in 2022, prompting widespread concerns over effluent being pumped into the sea.

In the previous year, issues impacting the water quality and safety concerns forced sales of Whitstable’s world-famous oysters to be suspended.

It was only restored to the highest quality rating for the lowest levels of contamination last year.

Meanwhile, the quality of bathing water at West Beach is graded ‘good’ by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), which states sewage outflow from the Swalecliffe outfall is unlikely to affect bathing water due to its distance away.

In October 2023, Mr Stanley suffered a medical emergency requiring advanced surgery at University College Hospital in London. Meanwhile, his wife, 69, has incurable cancer.

Mr Stanley says both of them have been encouraged by their doctors to swim as it is “essential for the improvement and maintenance of health and independence”.

But he adds the couple fear the danger posed by sewage pollution.

They used to be frequent sea swimmers during the summer months, but they say now they rarely risk it since the issues arose a few years ago.

Mr Stanley says he has offered to pay half of his outstanding water bill and settle up further invoices at half their standard amount until “Southern Water reduce local sewage discharges to much lower levels”.

Campaigners are expected to attend the court hearing on June 26 at Canterbury’s combined court to show their support.

Sewage releases on the Kent coast by Southern Water have been a long-running saga.

The firm pleaded guilty to 13 counts in April relating to untreated sewage spills in the county.

The discharges included incidents in Thanet, which shut several beaches for a week.

At the time, the company claimed they were due to a power outage at the Margate Foreness Point pumping station treatment works, caused by a lightning strike.

The closures sparked protests demanding an end to the leaks, resulting in Southern Water paying Thanet District Council £100,000 in compensation.

Whitstable has a particularly vocal group of campaigners, with KentOnline’s coverage of the ongoing sewage leak scandal sparking a furious outburst from rock star Bob Geldof back in 2021.

He backed the decision of some residents in the town to make a stand by refusing to pay the wastewater portion of their bills.

"Don't pay your water bills to Southern Water, they can **** off," he said at the time.

Southern Water was fined a record £90 million in 2021 for deliberately dumping billions of litres of raw sewage into the sea.

The company admitted 6,971 illegal spills from 17 sites in Kent, Hampshire, and West Sussex between 2010 and 2015.

A spokesperson for Southern Water said: “Last year we invested a record £965 million – part of £1.5 billion spent over and above Ofwat allowances over the past five years.

“This investment has been powered by £1.6 billion in new cash from our shareholders.

“But customer bills are vital to ensuring we can deliver improving performance and we are duty-bound to pursue unpaid bills – it’s only fair to customers who do contribute.

“For customers who are genuinely financially struggling we have a host of discounts up to 90%.”

Tanya Sephton, customer services director at South East Water said: “At South East Water we don’t actually deal with sewage but do bill our mutual customers for Southern Water’s services on its behalf.

“While we appreciate the concerns Mr Stanley has regarding the portion of his bill that relates to Southern Water, it is important that he, like all customers, continue to pay all of their bill.

“Regrettably, if customers withhold payment for the Southern Water portion of their bill, we will follow our standard approach to recover non-payment.

“While we understand Mr Stanley's concerns, we encourage him to reconsider his decision.”