And despite the cryptosporidium outbreak, Anglian Water has been named the second best tasting tap water in the country and the company wants to charge customers more.

The Health Protection Agency has confirmed that because the incubation period of the cryptosporidium parasites has now passed, the organisation has now closed the incident and is no longer having regular meetings about it and the illnesses caused.

However the agency is not ruling out secondary infections.

Around 250,000 people across the Daventry area and Northampton were warned to boil their tap water for 10 days after the contamination was discovered on June 25.

So far there have been 22 cases of cryptosporidiosis linked through genetics to the tap water contamination that started at Anglian Water’s Pitsford Water Treatment Works.

The water company has confirmed that letters are currently being sent to customers about the ‘goodwill gesture’ of six weeks of free water while the Drinking Water Inspectorate is continuing its investigation into the contamination.

Anglian Water was voted to have the second best tasting tap water by a panel of judges, including Michelin-starred chef Tom Aikens.

It rated 10 different water companies’ samples out of five for smell, clarity and taste. First place went to Severn Trent Water.

The tasting was organised to launch Green Thing’s Drink Tap campaign, which aims to promote tap water as more environmentally friendly compared to bottled water.

Anglian Water has also announced it is looking to increase customers’ bills by an average of £13 a year (equivalent to 0.7 per cent) to £373.

The proposal is now open to public comments via the company or the Consumer Council for Water before final plans are submitted to national water watchdog Ofwat in April next year.

The extra money will be spent as part of a £2.5 billion investment programme between 2010 and 2015 and will cover the increased cost of electricity and construction materials.

The Consumer Council for Water can be contacted at www.ccwater.org.uk or on 0845 0392837.