[News] Ofwat to basically deregulate water companies….

Eeyore said:

Correct. I personally have a policy of not investing in former essential utilities or oil, but I am clueless as to where my pension is invested. There are ramifications for ordinary folk if a major company goes down.

That said, I agree that dividend payments are a no no.

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chickens said:

The best analogy I can give you is that of a forest. Without the very largest trees occasionally either succumbing to high winds or a forest fire, only stunted things can grow beneath them. The massive tree takes most of the nutrients from the soil below, and the sunlight and rain from above.

If we artificially keep zombie companies operating (Won’t somebody think of the pension funds?) then smaller, more agile competitors will never prosper.

The above is not entirely useful in the case of essential utilities such as drinking water, but that’s because there cannot be meaningful competition without giving most of the UK up to the building of reservoirs and treatment plants, and running twelve sets of identical pipework to every home in the UK. Which is why the service should never have been privatised in the first place.

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Weststander said:

Thames Water. Interesting stuff from an expert from 09:10. They're paying 12% interest on their vast debt, servicing that is costing 30% of water bills.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_radio_five_live

Sorry shareholders in this case, prime for some sort of public ownership next year.

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nicko31 said:

Where did all the money go? Privatising something which was always going to remain a monopoly was always a very bad idea

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nicko31 said:

Where did all the money go? Privatising something which was always going to remain a monopoly was always a very bad idea

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