A new integrated regulator for water, stronger consumer advocacy and nine new regional water authorities to deliver on local priorities are among the final recommendations set out today by the Independent Water Commission.
The major report into the water industry in England and Wales has called for the regulator Ofwat to be scrapped and replaced with a single more powerful body.
“Fully joined-up regulation is essential for the system to meet the demands of the future and ensure that private water companies act in the public as well as the private interest”,
In a scathing report the commission said over £85 billion has been extracted from the English water system by shareholders and affiliated parties since privatisation.
“this £85 billion represents a direct transfer of value from the public to private owners — a sum extracted while storm overflows proliferated, leakage targets were missed, and river health declined.”
The report by Jon Cunliffe, a former Bank of England deputy governor has suggested 88 recommendations to improve crumbling infrastructure and in interviews this morning said that bill rises will surge over in real-terms by 30 per cent by 2030, after rising by an average of £126 this year.
Under Cunliffe’s recommendations, the new single regulator would set “minimum capital” requirements for investors and it would also be able to block changes in water ownership if they were not deemed to be in the long-term interests of the company.
The report said the government should offer the regulator direction to support stability and predictability – a reference to expected returns, and potential handling of fines for sewage leaks.
