North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson voted against a proposal to reduce the amount of raw sewage dumped in rivers last week.

South Swindon MP Robert Buckland, however, abstained from the vote on the amendment to the Environment Bill. 

Mr Tomlinson was one of the 265 MPs who voted with the government to reject an attempt by the House of Lords to place legal duties on companies to reduce discharge of sewage in rivers. Only 22 Conservative MPs rebelled by voting against the government.

But Mr Tomlinson defended his decision on the controversial vote. He said: "There has been much confusion over this very important issue.

"There is rightly cross-party support to tackle this issue and we have put in place immediate legal requirements on the water companies to make significant progress and within one year a fully costed, workable plan.

"I expect this to pass in Parliament and will happily support."

Mr Buckland explained why he abstained from voting on the Bill which goes back to the Lords this week. He said: "I chose not to oppose the amendment because I want to help ensure that the Bill is as robust as possible when it comes to ending the discharge if raw sewage.

"There has, however, been a wilful distortion of the government's position on what is an excellent Bill that toughens environmental standards.

"The Bill is now back in the Lords for further debate so I will be keeping a close eye on things."

Other MPs have said that that new measures would cost billions. 

The issue has caused outrage on social media, with people posting pictures of the MPs who voted against the amendment.