Utility Week

12 | 15TH - 21ST FEBRUARY 2019 | UTILITY WEEK A UtilityWeek c ampaign wave), Forbes suggested that ensuring a reli- able and consistent service was "becoming more, not less challenging for companies". And to tackle wider problems such as cli- mate change, population growth, decarboni- sation, oods, droughts, sustainability and resilience, utilities are constantly trying to provide a "business as usual" service while preparing for the transformation required to meet such challenges head on. Tony Cocker, the chair of A• nity Water and former chief executive of Eon, recently wrote in Utility Week (25 January): "Energy companies are at the forefront of tackling climate change, and water companies are at the frontline of mitigating the impacts of cli- mate change and making a positive contribu- tion to the environment." Utility regulators set high standards for companies to adhere to and hold them to account if they fail to deliver. But utilities need to get better at explaining their purpose if they are to restore and secure public trust. They need to be transparent about how they go about business, ensure they provide a high standard of service to all consumers, provide extra support to customers in vul- nerable circumstances, work to best protect the environment and do more to address real concerns such as leakage levels. Regulatory cycles put great pressure on companies to deliver e• ciencies. Utilities are having to ‰ nd innovative ways of delivering more for less. Tony Smith, chief executive of the Con- sumer Council for Water (CCWater), says the water watchdog has been "pressing" water companies to make sure custom- ers receive a cut of rewards from regulatory outperformance. "We'd like to see companies dip into their own pocket to ensure more low-income customers get ‰ nancial support," he tells UtilityWeek. Smith suggests that while some compa- nies fund measures to help vulnerable cus- tomers, their social tariŒ schemes "rely too heavily" on other customers' willingness to fund them. "That goodwill is in danger of running dry," he warns. "We know that customers are much more willing to chip in if they can see their company is also playing a part, but as it stands only Welsh Water, United Utilities and Yorkshire Water are making signi‰ cant con- tributions to funding their schemes." A spokesperson for Energy UK, adds: "Energy companies provide a broad range of support and bene‰ ts to both their custom- ers and the communities they serve, and to the wider economy and environment, from continued from previous page Time for a water industry for the public good W hile the high bills and large executive pay-packets of water companies o' en catch the headlines, we hear a lot less about the environmental case to radically change our water industry. Along with the rest of the world the UK is facing a water crisis and priva- tisation is making it worse. Today in the water industry, too much money is being paid out in dividends and not enough invest- ment is being used to ‰ x leaks, reduce usage or mitigate climate change. We need better resilience as well as better value for money. Carbon, value for money and climate change need to be prioritised like never before. Climate change is changing the predictability and ows of water into the system. If we don't act the impact could be catastrophic. The WWF states in Eng- land and Wales, only one in ‰ ve rivers are deemed to be in good ecological health and there is a one in four chance England will experi- ence a Level 4 drought before 2050 – meaning standpipes in the street. We're also facing risks of ooding, with up to 2.5 million homes at risk by 2050. The fourth richest economy in the world should be leading the way on climate change resilience but right now we are sitting ducks. These are long-term problems that need long-term solutions. To make sure our water provision is resilient we need an extra four billion of litres everyday by 2050. New infrastructure needs to be built sustainably and we need to plan for more water at certain times of the year and less at others. Under the Tories, tackling climate change has become more di• cult. Cuts to local authorities mean their planning budgets have almost halved since 2010 and a third of planning policy staŒ have been lost. Only 42 per cent of local authorities have a climate change strategy or adaptation plan. A study by the University of Greenwich found consumers in England are paying £2.3 billion more a year for their water and sewer- age bills today than if the utility companies had remained in public ownership. That is one reason why Labour has published plans outlin- ing that the next Labour government will take the water companies into public ownership. Our water industry needs to be publicly owned to be run for the public good. Pumping water around the network is energy intensive, so let's use more renewables. A responsible industry will also need to do more to encourage behavioural change to revaluate our water consumption. The average Londoner uses 164 litres of water a day – about 1.5 bathtubs and 14 per cent more than the national average. Access to clean drinking water is a human right. We must ensure the industry is run in the interests of the many not the few. With water leaking out of the pipes, and climate change happening now, I believe it's time to take back control of our water companies. Luke Pollard MP is Labour's shadow environment minister with responsi- bilities for water, • sheries, • ooding and coastal communities. He is the Member of Parliament for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport. Water Luke Pollard MP Analysis "We must ensure the industry is run in the interests of the many not the few."

• Cover