THAMES Water has lost an appeal asking for a £2m fine for sewage pollution to be cut to a 'proportionate' level.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the water giant's case on Friday, following the incident in Milton-under-Wychwood in 2015.

The company was fined £1.8m and ordered to pay £200,000 to charity last December for a 'catalogue of failings' after untreated sewage was discharged from the Bruern Road Sewage Pumping Station.

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An Environment Agency spokesperson said: "The Environment Agency stands by its decision to prosecute Thames Water for sewage pollution at Milton-under-Wychwood in 2015 for which the company was convicted by a court."

The incident polluted a 50m stretch of the Idbury Brook, near Milton-under-Wychwood, killing 146 Bullhead fish, and flooded a nearby garden.

A Thames Water spokesperson added: “We take our responsibility to the environment very seriously and accept that in this case we fell short of the high standards our customers expect of us.

"We took this position because while we do not dispute being fined, we feel it is important the level is both proportionate and consistent with similar cases.

“We have made changes to reduce the risk of this happening again as we work towards our long-term ambition of reducing pollution to zero.

"Our investors have not received a dividend for the last two years as we prioritise increased investment in our network.”