Tim Farron – blast from the past – is the LibDems’ Environment Spokesperson, and he told his party’s conference that ministers are “welcome to nick [their] ideas” when it comes to appropriating water companies in England and Wales out of private hands. What ideas are those? The LibDems want to use special administration as a stepping stone towards mutual ownership. Farron described the special administration regime as “the opportunity to, with relatively small expense, migrate the ownership of that company into mutual status.” An idea designed to pressure Burnham into the same… The Water (Special Measures) Act 2025 grants ministers the power to pass the costs of special administration onto consumers through higher water bills. And here’s the bit Farron definitely won’t be putting on a LibDem leaflet: a Thames Water special administration regime would force customers across the North to subsidise the company. It serves London and the Thames Valley… A Teneo analysis submitted to the High Court in December 2024 estimates that a Thames Water SAR could cost between £3.39bn to £4.12bn over an 18-month period – February 2025 to July 2026. This is equivalent to up to £2.75 billion per year. 50 million customers across the country face paying an extra £55 every year that Thames is stuck in special administration. Both Labour and the LibDems are happy with that…
ICYMI: no2nationalisation.uk
Asked by Lobby hacks about his past comments on Trump (“any UK politician who gave Trump the time of day should be ashamed right now”) Burnham was blithe:
“Politicians say things throughout their career, but now the important thing is to focus on the moment you are in.”
Were it so easy…