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Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Thames Water shortlisted for string of awards before being hit with £122.7m fine
The debt-ridden water firm was this week slapped with the huge penalty by watchdog Ofwat after breaking rules on sewage and dividend payouts - after being shortlisted for 12 industry awards Shamed Thames Water was shortlisted for a string of awards before being hit with a record £122.7 million fine. The debt-ridden firm was this week slapped with the watchdog penalty after breaking rules on sewage and dividend payouts. But we can reveal the disgraced company was earlier picked as a finalist no fewer than 14 times at an industry awards ceremony being held next month in Birmingham. It comes as footage shows the beleaguered firm's boss moaning about regulator Ofwat before sitting back relaxing watching cricket at work. The Water Industry Awards features a drinks reception, three-course dinner, as well as post-ceremony celebrations – with carriages at 1am. 'Platinum' tables for ten are priced at nearly £6,000 and include wine as well as a choice of either champagne or beer. There is even port to go with a cheese board and crackers. Single spots for the awards, said to feature 'a high-profile presenter', cost as much as £599 each. The Lib Dems ' Environment spokesperson Tim Farron said: "The last thing Thames Water deserves is a medal and it is completely scandalous that they are being praised after another shockingly bad year for the failing company which has just been fined for sewage pollution and payout breaches. Customers deserve affordable bills, clean waters and well maintained infrastructure. Thanks to Thames Water's incompetence, this is far from what customers get. Instead of prizes, the government should put Thames Water into special administration to manage their mountain of debt, and turn it into a public benefit company, so that customers finally start to see some value for money." CEO of charity River Action, James Wallace, added: 'It's frankly bizarre for Thames Water to be basking in awards season while our rivers are still full of human waste. We're not killjoys and when the pollution stops, we'll be the first to applaud. But celebration must follow accountability, not distraction from a record-breaking environmental failure.' And Green MP Ellie Chowns said of Thames Water: 'If there was an awards category for sheer cheek, they would be runaway winners. As long as private companies profit while polluting our waterways, this will keep happening.' A probe into Thames' sewage treatment works found "a series of failures by the company to build, maintain and operate adequate infrastructure," water regulator Ofwat said. The money must be paid by Thames and its investors, not customers, the watchdog added. The penalty is broken down into £104.5 million for the sewage investigation, plus £18.2 million for breaking rules over dividend payments. Earlier this week, Ofwat's chief executive David Black said: "This is a clear-cut case where Thames Water has let down its customers and failed to protect the environment." In stark contrast, Thames Water is a finalist in a dozen categories at the next month's awards – including three times for alliance or partnership of the year. It is also a finalist in the circular economy, customer initiative, groundbreaker, health and safety initiative, wastewater innovation project and leakage initiative categories. Other categories it is a finalist in include digitalisation project, asset management initiative, net zero carbon initiative, smart water networks, and water efficiency project. The footage of Thames Water boss Chris Weston watching cricket featured in a behind-the-scenes BBC documentary aired earlier this year. The CEO complains about "invasive" regulator Ofwat before viewing a clip of England playing while he sits at an office desk. 'They're getting more and more interested and intrusive around dividends… it's quite surprising,' he says. He adds: 'I think they have all the powers they need. But then I would say that, wouldn't I?' The camera then cuts to show him clicking a mouse to enjoy a cricket clip on the computer screen in front of him. Mr Weston is shown enlarging the footage full-screen so he can watch before relaxing back into his chair. Water firms have faced public outrage over the extent of pollution, rising bills, high dividends, and executive pay and bonuses. Thames hiked consumer water bills for its 16 million customers by an average of 31% in April. A Thames Water spokesperson said: "We are delighted to see our colleagues positively recognised for the work they do 24/7 to keep taps flowing and toilets flushing by being shortlisted for… industry awards, demonstrating our commitment to deliver life's essential service. "It is important that we recognise our people so that we can continue to retain talent in our industry. Over the next five years we will deliver a record amount of investment to address our ageing infrastructure as we remain focused on turning around our performance to deliver for customers, communities and the environment.'
RNZ News
22-05-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Christchurch's iconic McLean's Mansion up for sale
McLean's Mansion. Photo: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS McLean's Mansion - one of the country's largest wooden buildings, a 53 room, 2200 sq m Jacobean behemoth - is back on the market. The elaborate homestead served as a home for one of Canterbury's richest men, Allan McLean, and later, for his housekeeper, a hostel for dental nurses, a resthome and a vocational training school. It was then condemned for post-earthquake demolition and later saved from the wreckers ball, and was the site of an ambitious restoration project, latterly backed by former rich lister, art patron and convicted sex offender James Wallace . In a statement, Wallace, who was released from prison in December 2023 but continued to deny his offending, said he was pleased to advise that after nearly a decade of dedicated work, the Mansion has been saved. Wallace said the building was structurally sound and "approximately ninety-percent restored," with its future secured "provided that the restoration is completed and the building occupied". However, he said the trust had established there was "no viable prospect of securing the institutional backing and sustained public investment" needed to complete the project, leaving no option but to list the property for sale. The trust was seeking a purchaser who "appreciates the heritage value of the building" and was prepared to carry forward and fund the remaining work. It said proposals "aligned with the spirit and original purpose of the project" would be strongly preferred. Wallace did not respond to further queries, including what would happen to art work donated to the trust for display at the mansion. The imposing three story home was built for wealthy Scottish colonist, high country pastoralist Allan McLean. Designed by the England Brothers architects, who were also responsible for Riccarton House, the Kaiapoi Woolen Mills and Knox Church, it was constructed out of kauri in a Jacobean style with Victorian features, and completed in 1900. McLean's will established a trust to provide a home for "women of education and refinement in reduced or straitened circumstances". Following his death in 1907, his housekeeper resided in the house until 1913, when it became a home for beneficiaries operated by the McLean Institute, a charitable organisation founded by McLean. It was sold to the government in 1955, becoming a hostel for dental nurse trainees until 1977, when it was leased to the Salvation Army, and later the St Vincent de Paul Society. It remained empty until 1987 when it was purchased by the Murray family who ran a vocational training institution, the Christchurch Academy. In 2013, Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority determined the building was dangerous and notice was given to the owners that it needed to be demolished or strengthened. In September 2015, the Murray's applied for an emergency authority to demolish the building, which was thwarted by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga's refused to sign an archaeological authority; the resulting Environment Court case in found for Heritage New Zealand and the building was saved. The McLean's Mansion Charitable Trust was formed in 2016 in order to purchase and restore the building, but struggled to raise the funds and to reach an agreement with the vendors. The Christchurch City Council approved a $1.9 million heritage grant, subject to conditions, including a full conservation covenant being placed on McLean's Mansion and its grounds. The council would extend the grant three times, in 2018, 2020 and 2021 to encompass delays in the Trust finalising the purchase, issues obtaining the covenant and the complexity of the restoration. Staff assured councillors in 2020 that the project would be completed within eighteen months. Christchurch City Council head of planning and consents Mark Stevenson said the full Central City Landmark Heritage Grant of $1,934,000 had been paid to the trust for work completed to the fabric of the building. The work was primarily structural repairs and upgrades, new roofing and weatherproofing, and security measures to protect the building. While heritage grants normally have to be claimed within 18 months of approval, the scale of the substantial works meant the council approved extensions requested by the trust beyond the normal timeframes, he said. Although there was no guarantee the restoration project and public access envisioned by the trust would now eventuate, the work funded by the grant is completed, and there was no requirement to seek repayment. Wallace, who became involved in 2016, paid off the $2.6 million loan the trust had obtained and underwrote the $10 million project, which envisioned the building function as an arts centre, with an artist-in-residence, exhibition and performance spaces, a cafe and works from Wallace's art collection on display. James Wallace, one of New Zealand's best-known art collectors, businessmen, and philanthropists, arrives at court in 2019. Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly Wallace became chair of the trust in 2022. He went on trial in 2019 for indecently assaulting three young men and attempting to pervert the course of justice. He was found guilty in 2021 but maintained name suppression until it was lifted by the Court of Appeal in 2023. The trust joined Wallace in the bid for name suppression , arguing Wallace was "the very face and the funding behind the entire venture", allowing his name and connection to the trust to become public would make it "unpalatable" to potential donors and investors. Wallace was sentenced to two years and three months in jail in May 2021, and was released on parole in December 2023. Another former trust board member, Mustafa Yikar , was sentenced to one year's home detention in May 2021 for his role in a plot to bribe one of Wallace's victims. McLean's Mansion was listed as a Category One Heritage building in 1984, and scheduled in the original Christchurch district plan from the mid 1990s. It's 2022 rateable value was $4,860,000. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Times
21-05-2025
- Business
- Times
Jail sentences for bosses of polluting water firms an ‘empty threat'
The introduction of prison sentences for water company bosses who break the law is unlikely to 'put water companies off continuing with business as usual' because the regulator does not have the resources to prosecute them, a campaign group has warned. On Friday the government gave judges the power to jail water firm bosses for up to two years if they cover up sewage spills. However, James Wallace, the chief executive of the campaign group River Action, said: 'The likelihood of this law being enforced is slim. The Environment Agency has too few resources, too little legal expertise, and most importantly, too little access to court time to actually prosecute water companies.' Faced with repeated cuts in the past decade, the Environment Agency has struggled
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Government says water company investigations have increased
The government says it has overseen a large increase in criminal investigations into water companies for alleged breaches of environmental law. It said in a statement the Environment Agency was looking at dozens of alleged offences which included releasing excessive pollution and not carrying out adequate water quality monitoring. The government said the regulator had launched 81 criminal probes since last July's election after hiring 400 more staff for the purpose and that it had initiated proceedings against seven companies. Water UK, which represents water companies, said in a statement that firms should be investigated and held to account when necessary. The announcement comes amid public anger over pollution in rivers and seas. The number of pollution incidents recorded by water companies in England is at a 10-year high, according to data released by campaigners last month. The increase in Environment Agency inspectors is partly due to a recruitment drive from the previous Conservative government. In February 2024 the Conservatives said they planned to quadruple water inspections and hire an additional 500 staff for inspections and enforcement. None of the 81 investigations have so far led to convictions, which often take years to work their way through the court systems. But the government said they could lead to water companies being fined hundreds of millions of pounds. "This Labour Government is cleaning up the foul mess the Tories left behind with a record number of criminal investigations into law-breaking water companies - which could see bosses behind bars," said Environment Secretary Steve Reed. The Conservative Party defended its record in response, with a spokesman saying that while it was in government it had begun the process of reforming water and sewage systems and taken action to ban bonuses for bosses of water companies that committed criminal breaches. "The Labour Government made big promises on water, and we will continue to hold them to account to ensure they continue the work of the previous Conservative Government to improve our water and sewage systems for billpayers," the spokesman said. "It's good to see the Government finally taking water pollution seriously," said CEO of campaigners River Action, James Wallace. But he pointed out that water bosses could only serve jail time for obstructing investigations, not for pollution itself. "Jail time for water bosses remains highly unlikely," he said. "The law only applies to cover-ups — and there's no need to hide what's already happening in plain sight, week in, week out." Southern Water was hit with a record £126m punishment in 2019 for spills of wastewater into the environment from its sewage plants and for deliberately misreporting its performance. Greenpeace UK head of politics Ami McCarthy said: "Water firms have got away with flouting rules and pumping sewage into our rivers for far too long, so it's good to see ministers finally throwing the book at these serial polluters." She also urged the government to ensure that consumers did not foot the bill of any fines issued to water companies. "It is right that water companies are investigated and held to account when things go wrong," Water UK said in a statement. "Almost 99% of sewage and water treatment works meet their [pollution limit] permits and we are focused on getting to 100%."
The Guardian
14-05-2025
- Climate
- The Guardian
Dry weather and low river flows make UK summer drought likely, scientists say
Exceptionally low river flows are predicted across the UK this summer as a drought becomes more likely, scientists have said. An update from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UKCEH) has found that dry, warm weather is expected over the next three months, putting pressure on water resources. Hosepipe bans and other forms of water rationing are more likely the longer the country goes without significant rainfall. Yesterday, the Thames Water chief executive, Chris Weston, said he was not ruling out restrictions. James Wallace, the chief executive of River Action, said: 'This crisis was avoidable. But thanks to corporate greed and regulatory complacency, our reservoirs are running dry and our rivers are polluted with sewage. Rather than punish the culprits, customers have been told by government they will be fined £1,000 if they break a hosepipe ban. Yet again, the public will bear the costs of a failing water industry.' The UKCEH hydrological outlook reads: 'Over the period May-July, river flows in most areas are likely to continue to be below normal, with the potential for current low to exceptionally low flows to persist in some catchments.' Low river flows, coupled with dwindling reservoir levels, put waterways at risk, as farmers and water companies abstract from rivers when other water sources run low. This can lead to exceptionally low flows, which may result in large-scale fish deaths and increase the pressure on the UK's rivers, particularly if water companies continue to spill sewage into them. River flows are already far below average for the time of year, with almost every catchment in the UK below normal. UKCEH records showed that some areas have had the lowest October to March flows since records for those places began in 1958. No reservoirs have been built in England for more than 30 years, which leaves the country particularly vulnerable to drought. Reservoir levels are lower than they should be after parts of the country had their driest spring on record, and if the dry weather continues as predicted there may be water shortages, leading to hosepipe bans and potentially other forms of rationing. The Guardian reported recently that to avert a drought there would need to be rainfall at levels last seen in 2012, when record-breaking deluges caused floods across the country. This does not look likely with hot, dry weather ahead. Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion Farmers are also in for months of pain if the prediction proves correct; groundwater levels are likely to remain low in areas of the UK throughout the summer. Farmers rely on this for irrigation, and low groundwater can lead to crop failures. Wallace added: 'Britain may be heading for drought, but for decades since privatisation, water companies have siphoned off billions in dividends while wasting 3bn litres of drinking water per day, rather than invest in the infrastructure needed to cope with a changing climate. We've had ample warning about the risks, yet instead of building resilience, the industry banked on business as usual, putting our economy, food production, even healthcare at risk.'
