The Office for Environmental Protection has made a number of recommendations.

Stormont has been urged to update regulations to protect those swimming in Northern Ireland’s lakes and at the coast.

The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) has been handed 11 recommendations to update the Bathing Water NI Regulations.

It comes as a report published by the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) concluded the public could be better protected.

It has found that the regulatory regime is outdated as the regulatory requirements have not kept pace with the changing ways in which society uses rivers, lakes and coastal waters for recreation.

It says that the regulations focus on swimming, and any future review should consider expanding that to include activities such as surfing, paddle boarding and windsurfing.

It also points out that the regulations focus on a fixed bathing season, which does not reflect the year-round nature of the........

© Shropshire Star