Tag: thames-water

Water Companies: Fines

Published on by jonesjb

It is very hard to convey the anger felt by not just hundreds of thousands but millions of people at the mess the water companies have made over the past 30 years. I say “mess”, because that is what the public have had had to deal with – this is about sewage-filled seawater, dirty beaches, polluted rivers, chalk stream ecosystems destroyed and sometimes even E. coli in our water supply –  while water companies have been amazingly efficient at siphoning off money for shareholders and employees Continue reading “Water Companies: Fines” →

Water (Special Measures) Bill Report Stage

Published on by jonesjb

If we were talking about benefit claimants who had behaved in the way that water companies have, we would not just slap them on the wrist in the way that we have the water companies; we would crack down on them, claw back the money and take them to court. The water companies have got off so lightly in this whole process. That really does not seem fair to bill payers or to taxpayers. The water companies have been saying that they invest all the bill payers’ money in infrastructure, but they then take out loans and pay themselves dividends. With this legislation—even with the amendments—the Government are missing the opportunity to crack down on predatory capitalism. Continue reading “Water (Special Measures) Bill Report Stage” →

Water Bill Committee Stage Day 2

Published on by jonesjb

If I look at this from a completely different perspective, possibly from the perspective of the previous Government, it was a remarkable success story over 14 years because we had huge growth in sewage and pollution and it had a multiplier impact on gross national product. Growth is not an indicator of happiness or of the economy being run for the benefit of many. It is a nonsense soundbite for the economically illiterate and needs to be deleted from this legislation Continue reading “Water Bill Committee Stage Day 2” →

Water (Special Measures) Bill [HL] Second Reading

Published on by jonesjb

I will bring forward amendments to ensure that this Bill does not simply allow these failed zombie companies to continue extracting bill payers’ cash while loading huge amounts of debt on to the balance sheet. The Government need a serious look at the opportunity to bring these companies into public ownership, and this Bill should give Ministers the option to nationalise these companies where it makes sense. Continue reading “Water (Special Measures) Bill [HL] Second Reading” →