Water industry review: Will these proposals make any difference?
Excessive debt and inappropriate dividends that threaten some water companies' resilience – such as Thames Water – would be addressed by minimum capital levels and powers to block ownership changes if not in the company's long-term interests.We already know that water companies will invest more than £100bn in upgrading systems over the next five years - and that bills will rise sharply to pay for it.Sir Jon says there are some "inescapable facts", including climate change, higher environmental standards, a growing population, and replacing ageing infrastructure.The problems plaguing the industry come from not investing for a long period, meaning there needs to be a "massive" investment, in order to catch up, he says.The amount companies can invest is a function of what they are allowed to charge and for the last 20 years, bills have risen by less than inflation - so have been getting cheaper in real terms.It is widely accepted that Ofwat prioritised keeping bills low over new investment. If consumers want a better water system, someone has to pay for it.But what the Environment Secretary Steve Reed wants - and Cunliffe suggests - is a way of making sure bills do not have to spike so dramatically in future to catch up for years of underinvestment - as we are seeing now.Ofwat is paying the price for that by being abolished.Throughout the report there are continual references to the telecoms regulator Ofcom - which is seen to have done a better job by maintaining a focus on continual investment in better infrastructure over time.But while you can change the regulator, the reality is that higher future bills are the price for fixing the underinvestment of the past.There's a lot to digest in this - including compulsory metering and public health officials on water planning bodies. It will take time to take effect. But at least the government will be able to point to the Cunliffe review and insist it has set the wheels of change in motion.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
15 minutes ago
- Reuters
Proxy adviser tells Third Point Investors Ltd shareholders to vote against Malibu Life deal
LONDON, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Institutional Shareholder Services has recommended that shareholders in Third Point Investors Limited (TPOGu.L), opens new tab vote against a deal to acquire Malibu Life Reinsurance SPC, a report from the proxy adviser said on Tuesday. The proposed deal would "fundamentally change" the fund's investment case without offering minority shareholders an exit option at a fair price for their entire holdings, the report said. Third Point had no immediate comment on the recommendation. Third Point Investors Limited, which listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2007, said last month that it will acquire Malibu Life Reinsurance SPC, a life annuity reinsurer which billionaire Daniel Loeb launched last year. Shareholders have to vote on the deal on August 14. Loeb has proposed transforming his Third Point Investors Limited to address a valuation discount it has to his New York-based hedge fund Third Point. Third Point Investors (TPIL) would also move from being based in Guernsey to the Cayman Islands, change its name to Malibu Life Holdings Ltd, according to the ISS report. These changes would constitute a "reverse takeover" under UK Listing Rules, ISS said. Like other UK-listed investment companies, TPIL is known as a feeder fund and was originally designed to give retail shareholders a taste of hedge funds that had long been off limits to all but the wealthiest financiers. A dissenting shareholder group said the acquisition should be put to an independent vote. "Without Third Point and Dan Loeb's affiliated shares and votes, it is the Group's considered view that the transaction would not pass," the dissenting shareholder group said in a statement. It includes UK investment firm Asset Value Investors Limited, Metage Capital and Evelyn Partners Investment Management, as well as Australian investment firm Staude Capital and California-based Almitas Capital. The dissenting shareholder group said on Friday that it had contacted a further 10% of shareholders that it said oppose the deal. Reuters was not able to verify the identity of these shareholders or their intention to vote. TPIL said last month that it had irrevocable undertakings from shareholders holding 45% of the company's voting rights to back the deal, including Third Point Management, with 25%.
The Independent
16 minutes ago
- The Independent
Britain urged to let hero Afghans bring their families to UK after major data leak put thousands at risk
The government has been urged to let hero Afghans granted sanctuary in Britain bring their loved ones to the UK after a major data breach put the lives of up to 100,000 people at risk from the Taliban. More than 50 refugee charities and lawyers have written to Yvette Cooper, urging her to make it easier for Afghans who were allowed to relocate to the UK due to British links to bring family members – many of whom are at risk of reprisals – with them. The pleas come after revelations of a 'catastrophic' data leak at the Ministry of Defence in February 2022, which involved the details of thousands of Afghans who said they were in danger from the Taliban and had applied for sanctuary in Britain being shared online. The dataset, inadvertently sent out by a member of the armed forces, included the personal details of applicants to the MoD's Arap resettlement scheme, which allows Afghans who supported British troops to seek sanctuary in the UK. The leak was covered up by a superinjunction, which was lifted in July after The Independent challenged the draconian legal order at the High Court. Ms Cooper has now been told the government 'has no time to waste' if it 'wants to prevent the worst possible consequences of the data leak becoming a dire reality'. Charity workers and solicitors, including from Asylum Aid and modern slavery charity Kalayaan, told Ms Cooper: 'The UK government has a moral responsibility to the Afghan people who continue to suffer, including now as a result of the data leak and have no choice but to seek safety elsewhere. 'The 2022 data breach directly exposed Afghans still in the country to a risk of reprisals they were not even aware of, and the High Court, in lifting the superinjunction, recognised that its imposition may have increased the risks these people face.' The letter continued: 'Poor decision-making could yet again have exposed Afghans to serious harm, with many of these people having clear UK family ties'. They added: 'It is essential that those who were resettled under Arap and ACRS are able to live in safety and are given a fair opportunity to reunite with their families.' Unlike asylum routes, Afghans using Arap cannot sponsor family members to come to the UK under refugee reunion rules. The same applies to those relocated under ACRS, designed to help those who supported British values, such as journalists or women's rights activists. However, some may be able to make a separate immigration application. But charities and rights groups say these family routes are very restrictive and can often involve 'extremely costly application fees and require copious, specific documentation'. Decision-makers often refuse these applications from Afghan families, leading to lengthy appeals. Lib Dem MP Wendy Chamberlain, chair of the all-parliamentary group for Afghan women, said: 'There is already anecdotal evidence of reprisals on family members by the Taliban - the Home Office has no time to waste if the government wants to prevent the worst possible consequences of the data leak becoming a dire reality. 'The Home Office desperately needs to take a pragmatic and compassionate approach to allowing Afghans resettled in the UK to be reunited safely with their families. It is clear that these schemes have been seriously mis-handled, culminating in the recent exposure of the 2022 data leak.' In one recent case highlighted by The Independent, a security guard who worked for the British embassy in Kabul for almost two decades has been unable to bring his two eldest sons to the UK. Hamidullah Fahim and his wife Zaghona were brought to Britain with two young children in December 2023, but he couldn't bring his two eldest sons, who are now in their 20s. He said that his family is struggling with being separated, saying: 'We want to do whatever we can to be reunited with them and to let the Home Office know of the injustice that has been carried out in our case'. Isaac Shaffer, at Refugee Legal Support, said it was 'critical' that the government sped up decision-making on Arap cases in light of the data breach. He explained that most of the people he was helping 'have waited over a year for a final decision on their Arap application and have remained in hiding throughout; in constant fear, and in extraordinarily precarious circumstances', adding: 'Knowledge of this data breach has only exacerbated this fear and uncertainty'. James Tullett, CEO at charity Ramfel, who helped co-ordinate the letter, said: 'The government has acknowledged that the people they have resettled need protection and yet this offer of support comes with the heavy price of separation from family. 'Allowing Afghan families to reunite won't solve all the problems associated with the data leak, but it will make a monumental difference for the affected families'.
BBC News
17 minutes ago
- BBC News
London mayor announces 8,000 new properties completed
The mayor of London has claimed he is tackling the city's housing crisis "head on" as he announced that more than 8,000 new homes have been started via his Land Fund, five years ahead of Sadiq Khan said the fund provided flexibility for City Hall to provide financing for projects, which includes buying land, to "unlock" more mayor also reported that last year saw London complete just over 11,600 homes, with nearly 6,700 of them "affordable homes for social rent and equivalent".The City Hall Conservatives said "this is a clearly a smoke-and-mirrors announcement by the mayor to distract from his housing failures". City Hall said the initial target to start 8,000 homes by March 2030 had now been surpassed, with 8,283 starts as of the end of March May the mayor and the government announced a cut of more than 6,000 homes to the affordable homes programme, for 2021-2026, from the previous range of 23,900 to 27,100 reduction – with a new target range of between 17,800 and 19,000 – represented a cut of 22%.Lord Bailey, City Hall Conservatives' housing spokesman, said: "Khan's own government have set him the target of building 88,000 homes a year, in recognition of the acute housing crisis in London which is driving our rents and mortgages up."Today he's proud to be announcing that he's only met one eighth of that target."We want this government to succeed, for the sake of our city and our country - but Labour have clearly failed."Lord Bailey said "just 2.5% of his promised affordable homes" were completed despite receiving almost £9bn from the last added: "We need to move away from talking about 'housing starts' - you cannot live in a start, only a completion." The Mayor's Land Fund, established by Sir Sadiq in 2017, is made up of more than £736m - with £486m provided by the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local provides various types of investment and has a range of investment opportunities alongside commercial fund has provided land acquisition finance to help the Peabody Trust deliver nearly 1,000 homes on the former Holloway Prison site in Islington; bought surplus land on hospital sites capable of delivering up to 1,000 homes across Enfield and Haringey; and supported City & Docklands with finance for build-to-rent Sadiq said: "We know there is more work to do to fix the housing crisis in London. I'm pleased that the government has committed to work with me to establish the City Hall Developer Investment Fund to unlock further housing in London."I will continue to work closely with them to secure even more national support to help build the level of new housing London needs, as we build a better, fairer London for everyone."Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said the housing crisis "has stopped our young people from achieving the dream of homeownership, especially in London".She added: "That's why we welcome the mayor of London pushing ahead to build these homes, and we will continue to work hand-in-hand with him to deliver on our stretching target of 1.5 million homes."
