Thames Water customers have called for an urgent inquiry into the company’s finances after children became seriously unwell from swimming in the river and homes were left without water during a drought.
Campaigners have expressed astonishment that the company may be bailed out by the taxpayer after it failed to invest appropriately in infrastructure to stop sewage spills and leaks.
There are fears that Britain’s biggest water company may not survive because of its huge debts. Ministers and Ofwat, the water services regulation authority, are discussing the possibility of placing Thames Water into a special administration regime that would take the company into public ownership temporarily.
Jo Robb, from the Henley Mermaids wild swimming group in Henley-on-Thames, said: “We are contacted all the time by parents asking us if it is safe for their children to paddle in the River Thames in a heatwave. It disgusts us that in a G7 country in 2023 we get parents telling us weekly about their children who have vomiting and diarrhoea from swimming in the river. This is a result of total failure of Thames Water to invest in sewage infrastructure for the last 30 years.”
She said these problems were partly caused by the company’s debt, adding: “It shows the total failure of the privatisation model. These companies are heavily leveraged and it is not sustainable – it is a matter of time before one of them goes to the wall.
“No one will be surprised if Thames Water is the first one. They spend almost £800m a year servicing debt. Thames Water will not be the last … they are all facing these problems. There needs to be a public inquiry into the financial affairs of the water industry. Especially when it comes to climate change, drought and water security, these companies are crucial to our wellbeing. The public has been mugged in broad daylight.”
Hundreds of homes in Surrey were left without water in hot, dry weather last summer amid criticism that the company had not acted adequately on leaks and burst pipes, with vulnerable residents resorting to queueing for bottled water in 30C (86F) heat.
Zoe Franklin, a campaigner against Thames Water and the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Guildford, said the company’s profits should be used to fix leaks and sewage rather than pay dividends.
“Thames Water has been a disaster for Guildford. They left villages without running water for days on end and have polluted our rivers. People are furious with them and want big change. Our bills should stop funding their insulting dividends and bonuses, and instead start fixing the leaks and sewage. It’s not rocket science but the government just seems to let them get away with it.”
The Guardian revealed last week that Thames Water leaks had reached a five-year high.
James Wallace, the chief executive of the campaign group River Action, said the government and Thames Water must urgently meet environmental groups or risk devastating results.
“River Action and the NGO sector wish to see the government take control following the resignation of Thames Water CEO and news of potential insolvency. We must grasp this opportunity to turn around decades of underinvestment and polluting for profit.
“It’s vital now that the government and Thames Water meet with the community they serve and environmental NGOs. They must humbly acknowledge their combined accountability for their part in the river pollution crisis and make binding commitments to urgent investment in the outdated and dysfunctional infrastructure.
“It is time to move beyond blame and denial to focusing on immediate collaborative action or risk long-term water insecurity, public ill health and loss of wildlife.”
The potential collapse of Thames Water has caused nationalisation campaign groups to call for the discussion on taking water companies into public ownership to be revived.
Mathew Laurence, the director of the Common Wealth thinktank, said: “Extractive ownership models – which have loaded the company up with debt, increased household bills, all while paying shareholders billions – are the root cause.
“As the privatised utilities model comes under ever-greater strain, from water to the grid to energy suppliers, it is unlikely to be the last. The most prudent solution is to break with this failed model and return to public ownership, as successfully used in Scotland, Wales, and across Europe. It is time to put people above profit.”
Cat Hobbs, the founder of the public ownership campaign group We Own It, added: “England has chosen to hand over its essential water infrastructure wholesale to privatised monopolies, owned by a handful of shareholders around the world. They have extracted £72bn in dividends while letting pipes leak and pouring sewage into our rivers and seas. And they have collectively built up a debt mountain of £53bn, although they started out in 1989 with zero debt.
She said this was unsustainable, adding: “We are calling for the government to set up shadow public water authorities across the country in every region, which can be ready to take over from the failing private companies. Publicly owned structures would be able to reinvest profits and work with communities to clean up our rivers and seas.”
Thames Water has been contacted for comment.
