Latest news with #water regulator
The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Anglian Water to pay out £62.8m after wastewater failures
The water regulator has told Anglian Water to pay out a £62.8 million enforcement package due to failures managing its wastewater treatment works and network. Ofwat said it is proposing that the package must be paid by the company and its shareholders 'for the benefit of the environment and their customers'. It said failures by the company led to 'excessive spills from storm overflows'. The industry regulator said its investigation found that the water firm failed to run, maintain and upgrade its wastewater operations adequately to ensure they could cope with the flows of sewage and wastewater coming to them. It added that the firm failed to have adequate processes and oversight from senior management and its board to ensure its operations were performing properly and would meet legal requirements. Lynn Parker, senior director for enforcement at Ofwat, said: 'Our investigation has found failures in how Anglian Water has operated and maintained its sewage works and networks, which has resulted in excessive spills from storm overflows. This is a serious breach and is unacceptable. 'We understand that the public wants to see transformative change. That is why we are prioritising this sector-wide investigation which is holding wastewater companies to account for identified failures. 'We are pleased Anglian Water has accepted that it got things wrong and is now focusing on putting that right and taking action to come back into compliance.' The regulator said Anglian will create a £5.8 million community fund to support projects delivering environmental and social benefits for local communities, focusing on the water environment. Anglian will also invest £57 million into developing excess flow management plans to adequately deal with wastewater flows in at least eight catchments in its region to provide local environmental improvements. The utilities firm, which provides services to seven million people in the east of England, said it would also accelerate a number of investments to drive the early delivery of more storm tanks and screens. Earlier this year, Anglian said it was putting up bills by 19%, to an average of £626 a year, for the 2025/26 financial year from April. In May, the water supplier was fined a record £1.42 million for drinking water failures that affected around 1.3 million people. Mark Thurston, chief executive of Anglian Water, said: 'We understand the need to rebuild trust with customers and that aspects of our performance need to improve to do that. 'Reducing pollutions and spills is our number one operational focus, and we have both the investment and the partners in place to deliver on those promises as part of our £11 billion business plan over the next five years. 'In the meantime, we have proposed this redress package, recognising the need to invest in the communities and environments most impacted.'
Reuters
21-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
What are the key recommendations for reforming UK's water sector?
LONDON, July 21 (Reuters) - An official report released on Monday outlined a plan to overhaul Britain's water sector, seeking to better protect the environment, investors, and consumers. The privatised water industry in England and Wales has sparked widespread anger by releasing record levels of sewage into rivers and lakes, prompting the Labour government to promise major reforms when it was elected last year. Below are the highlights of the report's 88 recommendations by the Independent Water Commission: The report recommends a single water regulator in England and one in Wales to replace the current fragmented regulatory system. This would streamline oversight, close regulatory gaps, and boost investor confidence as the sector faces major challenges from climate change and population growth, the report said. The Commission recommended tighter oversight of water company ownership and governance, including powers for the regulator to block changes in ownership if investors are not seen to be prioritising the long-term interests of the company and its customers. It recommended that the regulator set "minimum capital" requirements so that companies are less reliant on debt and more financially resilient. The Commission called for a reset of economic regulation with a new "supervisory" approach for tailored oversight and earlier interventions. It also recommended changes to the Price Review process to ensure proper investment and attract long-term, low-risk funding. The report proposed creating eight new regional water planning authorities in England and one national authority in Wales. They would be responsible for developing water investment plans, streamlining existing planning processes, directing funding and ensuring accountability from all sectors that impact water. The Commission called for a National Water Strategy covering at least 25 years and with regular milestones. The strategy should guide cross-sector water use and be supported by ministerial priorities to guide regulation. The report recommended a national social tariff to ensure consistent support for low-income customers who need help to pay their bills, addressing current regional disparities. The report urged stronger environmental regulation, including improved monitoring, stricter rules on abstraction, sludge, drinking water standards and water supply. It recommended compulsory water metering, revised tariffs for industrial users, expanded water reuse and rainwater harvesting schemes. It also set out where environmental legislation needs updating. The report called for reforms in how water infrastructure is managed, monitored and delivered, including new requirements for companies to map and assess their assets.
The Independent
21-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Landmark review calls for Ofwat to be scrapped in favour of powerful single regulator
The water regulator should be scrapped and replaced with a single body to restore trust in the beleaguered industry, a landmark review has concluded. Ministers should ditch Ofwat and simplify the system with a powerful regulator looking at every area, according to the Independent Water Commission's final report. The report, led by former Bank of England deputy governor Sir Jon Cunliffe, recommended far-reaching changes to the way the water system is regulated as it called the current landscape "fragmented and overlapping". In its 88 recommendations, scrapping Ofwat in favour of one powerful regulator is the most significant change to the sector. It also advised removing the regulatory roles of the Environment Agency and Natural England, which monitor the sector's impact on nature, such as companies illegally dumping sewage into waterways. The current system has faced intense criticism for overseeing water companies during the years they paid out shareholders and accrued large debts while ageing infrastructure crumbled and sewage spills skyrocketed. Following the publication of his report, Sir Jon warned water bills will rise by almost a third by the end of the decade. He told BBC Breakfast: "Bills are going to rise by 30% over the next five years. There are some inescapable facts here. The cost of producing water and dealing with our wastewater is going up. Climate change, higher environmental standards, demographic pressure, the population is going up. Just that need to renew ageing infrastructure. "The problem comes when you suddenly go from not investing for a long period, to massive investment, in order to catch up. That's really what's driven those huge bill increases that we've seen. "We need to help the most vulnerable, we also need to smooth that over a long period so that people can cope with the higher costs of water. And the regulators have a really important job in squeezing efficiency, incentivising the companies to be more efficient." Environment secretary Steve Reed on Sunday said Ofwat was 'clearly failing', in a sign he will accept the recommendation to axe it. He will also create a new, legally binding water ombudsman, expanding the role of the voluntary Consumer Council for Water and bringing the sector into line with other utilities. And over the weekend, Mr Reed committed to halving sewage pollution in England's rivers by 2030 thanks to a £104 billion investment from the sector in upgrading infrastructure. Other recommendations from the commission include stronger consumer advocacy, nine new regional water authorities to deliver on local priorities, significant improvements to environmental regulation and tighter oversight of company ownership and government. The regional authorities - eight in England and one national authority in Wales - would see current planning responsibilities devolved and resources from regulators transferred to ensure investments reflect local priorities and voices. It comes after nearly nine months of the commission analysing, researching and engaging with more than 50,000 responses to its call for evidence. Sir Jon said: "Restoring trust has been central to our work. Trust that bills are fair, that regulation is effective, that water companies will act in the public interest and that investors can get a fair return. "Our recommendations to achieve this are significant. They include the management of the whole water system, regulation of the water industry, the governance and financial resilience of water companies and a stronger voice for local communities and water customers. "In this report I have considered what is best for the long-term future of water. "This is a complex sector with a highly integrated system, responsible for the second-largest infrastructure programme in the UK. "Resetting this sector and restoring pride in the future of our waterways matters to us all."In countless conversations in the last nine months I have been struck by the urgent need and passion for change."Doing this will require hard work, strong leadership and sustained commitment. But it can and must be done." The report also shares recommendations on implementation, including which reforms can be delivered in the short term and which require new primary legislation. In a speech responding to Sir Jon's report later on Monday, the Environment Secretary is set to welcome the commission's recommendations to ensure "the failures of the past can never happen again".
Telegraph
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Live Scrap Ofwat, major water review recommends
The water regulator should be abolished and replaced with a new single body covering England and Wales, a major review into the sector has urged. Sir Jon Cunliffe, who was tasked with leading the Independent Water Commission, has recommended 88 changes to the industry which he said was 'failing' customers. They included abolishing Ofwat, which oversees how much water companies in England and Wales can charge for services and the Drinking Water Inspectorate, which ensures that public water supplies are safe. The report, published on Monday morning, recommended far-reaching changes to the way the water system is regulated as it found the current landscape 'fragmented and overlapping'. It also advised removing the regulatory roles of the Environment Agency and Natural England, which monitor the sector's impact on nature, such as companies illegally dumping sewage into waterways. Sir John also said that previous governments were partly to blame, telling Times Radio 'it's the failure of government to balance out all the different pressures on water'. Steve Reed, the environment secretary, will give a speech this morning promising that 'the failures of the past can never happen again'.
The Guardian
21-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
New ‘powerful' water regulator to replace ‘failed' Ofwat in drive to ‘reset' sector
A new, 'powerful' water regulator should replace Ofwat, the Drinking Water Inspectorate and the Environment Agency to 'reset' a sector tarnished by scandals over sewage spills and financial mismanagement, a major review has recommended. The government is expected to adopt the recommendation for England and Wales made in the review it commissioned from Sir Jon Cunliffe, a former deputy governor of the Bank of England, which was released on Monday. Critics have said Ofwat has presided over a culture of underinvestment in infrastructure and financial mismanagement by water companies since its creation as the industry was privatised in 1989. Thames Water, the most troubling case for the government and the UK's largest water company, is loaded with £20bn in debt and struggling to stave off financial collapse into a special administration, a form of temporary nationalisation. Cunliffe's review suggested a new regulator, with powers to 'direct', or take control of, failing water firms. Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme, Cunliffe said Ofwat has 'failed' because 'for many years it didn't have the powers'. He added: 'To be blunt about it, it was directed by government to take a light touch to regulation.' The environment secretary, Steve Reed, also announced on Monday he would be taking up the recommendation in the report to create an ombudsman with legal powers to compensate consumers who are failed by the water industry, for example with taps running dry due to burst pipes and sewage leaks in gardens. The report found that there are just 58 members of staff charged with protecting the safety of the country's drinking water, because of civil service rules on headcount and pay. This means, the commission said, the Drinking Water Inspectorate in its current form may not be able to meet the 'challenges of the future'. The report also said the country is not protected from pollutants in water such as PFAs, or 'forever chemicals' and microplastic, and recommends legislative changes to address these and remove them from the water supply. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion It also recommends that bills are not raised dramatically, as they were in April and will be until the end of the decade, with the new regulator prioritising consistent investment in infrastructure so companies do not have to 'play catch up' and have to increase bills to urgently build or repair sewers and reservoirs.
