Your choice...plug leaks or save Ratty

IS Ratty worth saving? That is the £1 billion question the Water Council would like Financial Mail readers to answer.

The furry creature immortalised in The Wind In The Willows is declining faster than any other UK mammal. Ratty, and other rare animals, can survive only if rivers are cleaned of poisons and riverbanks restored.

The council, which represents all water companies, would like to spend about £7 billion to improve water quality and the environment. It estimates £1 billion of this would directly help Ratty and his friends.

But the council, which wants to raise water bills by £15 a year to cover some of the £21 billion cost of investment and maintenance, also believes that the £1 billion might be spent better on the prevention of water bursts.

Barrie Clarke, communications director at the Water Council, said: 'Ideally we would like to do both. We are pro-wildlife and industry, but we do need to get the balance right. We would like your readers to help us in this dilemma.'

What do you think? Write to Barrie Clarke at 1 Queen Anne's Gate, London SW1H 9BT.