09 Oct 2024
Water companies’ failure to deal with customers’ concerns over environmental performance and water meters has fuelled a steep rise in complaints to the consumer watchdog. Credit: The Climate Reality Project The Consumer Council for Water (CCW) saw the number of complaints which had to be escalated to it by household customers in England […]
02 Oct 2024
The Guardian reports that the new Labour government used “economically illiterate” analysis paid for by water companies in order to argue against the nationalisation of the sector in England. In an official letter recently sent to anti-sewage groups, civil servants cited a paper by the Social Market Foundation as a reason to avoid nationalisation as part of […]
25 Sep 2024
Reported in City AM Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund has reportedly told the government that it will not invest in regulated UK water, electricity and gas utilities due to unpredictable rules on infrastructure, in a blow for Labour’s economic strategy. GIC, the world’s seventh-largest sovereign wealth fund with more than $800bn (£600bn) in assets, declared its […]
18 Sep 2024
Following last week’s publication of the Water (Special Measures) Bill, the government has given a clearer indication of the importance of water sector investment in the delivery of growth and job creation. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed and Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Lord Livermore hosted a roundtable […]
12 Sep 2024
The new government has set out details of the provisions in the Water (Special Measures) Bill and how they are intended to apply. The policy statement includes details on provisions which will enable government and regulators to: block bonuses for executives who pollute our waterways bring criminal charges against persistent law breakers enable automatic and […]
05 Sep 2024
Water UK, the trade association for the water industry, has published its response to Ofwat’s recent draft determination, which gives the economic regulator’s initial view of water company business plans for the forthcoming five year period, 2025 to 2040. In its submission Water UK urges Ofwat to back company plans in full and ensure the […]
31 Jul 2024
One of the major credit rating companies, Fitch Ratings, has warned that some UK water companies will “find it challenging” to maintain existing ratings for AMP8 In a new report, Fitch says the Draft Determinations recently announced by UK water regulator Ofwat for the AMP8 April 2025 to March 2030 investment period, introduces several significant changes […]
17 Jul 2024
Last week’s Ofwat announcement on draft determinations for 2025-2030 business plans was covered in Water News. The headlines are that the £96bn proposed programme has been reduced by nearly 10% to £88bn, and allowable bill increases have been reduced by 33%. In slightly more detail, there is £10bn to reduce storm overflows, £1.4bn of which […]
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