The Privatised Water Companies In England Are Going Bust - Can The UK Government Survive Another Disaster

11th January 2024

After decades of underinvestment, the debt-ridden, polluting industry is in crisis. Experts share their views on how to reverse the tide.

A debt-ridden, leaking, polluting industry, owned largely by foreign investment firms, private equity and pension funds who have presided over decades of underinvestment most shockingly illustrated by the scale of raw sewage dumping into rivers: that is the privatised English water industry in 2024.

It is a global anomaly. Over the last three decades it has evolved into a notoriously complex system of shadow ownership that has loaded debt on to the balance sheet, while providing rich dividends for investors.

Today, water as an industry is in varying levels of crisis. In the south-east, Thames Water, the biggest company, is riddled with debts of £18bn and struggling to extract the millions it needs from shareholders while its value plummets. At South East Water, the cost of servicing its debt has risen in six months by £7.4m to £54.8m as inflation and higher interest rates bite.

Read the full article at the Guardian - How could England's water system be fixed

[url=https://www.ciwem.org/the-environment/how-should-water-and-environmental-management-firms-tap,-retain-and-promote-female-talent]Thirty years on, what has water privatisation achieved[/url]
According to the National Audit Office, water bills have increased 40 per cent above inflation since 1989. To add insult to injury for those struggling to pay household bills, since 2010, shareholders have enjoyed dividends soaring upwards of £13.5 billion. That's almost the amount the companies raked in in pre-tax profits.