Utility Week

Community world when heavyweight former colleagues of the president had testi ed in open court about hisguilt. So he dodged a bullet there, but it didn't all go his way this week. Down in Mexico, large steel sections of his much- vaunted border wall fell over in high winds. The panels toppled on to the Mexican side of the border and had to be retrieved and re-erected. So far, so ludicrous, but of potentially more harm was a sporting ga• e. Sport is a religion in the US, and its adherents don't come much more fanati- cal than his "base", so when he tweeted congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs for winning the Super Bowl (a huge sporting event in the US), he applauded the e• orts of "the Great State of Kansas". The team actually hails from neighbouring Missouri. It's strange to say, but of all Trump's mis-steps, not knowing where big league sporting teams are based could likely cause him the most embarrassment with the red-neck Make America Great Again crowd. That, and goo ng around waving your arms in the air like you're con- ducting an orchestra while The Star-Spangled Banner plays and everyone else solemnly holds their hands over their hearts and stares into the middle distance, which he also did this week – at the Super Bowl. Disconnector Publishing director, Utilities: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellenbennett@fav-house.com; Content director: Jane Gray, janegray@fav-house.com, t: 01342 333004; Editor: Suzanne Heneghan, t: 01342 332106, e: suzanneheneghan@fav-house.com Digital editor: James Wallin, 01342 332015, jameswallin@fav-house.com; Intelligence editor: Denise Chevin, 01342 332087, denisechevin@fav-house.com Energy correspondent: Tom Grimwood, t: 01342 332061, e: tomgrimwood@fav-house.com; Policy correspondent: David Blackman, e: davidblackman@ fav-house.com; Reporter: Adam John, t: 01342 332069, e: adamjohn@fav-house.com; Water correspondent: Ruth Williams, e: ruthwilliams@fav-house.com, t: 01342 332069 Production editor: Paul Newton, t: 01342 332085, e: paulnewton@fav-house.com; Business development manager: Ben Hammond, e: benhammond@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332116; Business development executive: Sarah Wood, e: sarahwood@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332117 Conference sponsorship manager: Sophie Abbott, t: 01342 332062, e: sophieabbott@fav-house.com; General enquiries: 01342 332000; Membership enquiries: Peter Bissell, t: 01342 332057, e: peterbissell@fav-house.com. 2,500 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2018 Membership subscriptions: UK £950+VAT per year. Contact Jo Nikiforov on: 01342 332077 Utility Week is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), the regulator of the UK's magazine and newspaper industry. We abide by the Editors' Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint, please contact the Editor. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you want more information about IPSO or the Editors' Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk. Over at Conservative HQ, meanwhile, things couldn't look rosier. Indeed, they're selling a load of celebratory Brexit-related tat, including £12 tea towels, £75 limited edition prints and £6 fridge magnets, all emblazoned with our tousle-haired PM and the slogan "Got Brexit done". You can even get a copy of the With- drawal Agreement signed by the prime minister, although you'd have to enter a ra™ e for that one at a ver a go. To some people the celebra- tions may seem a little prema- ture, but Disconnector says full marks to the Conservatives – at least someone will be making money out of Brexit. You win some, you lose some It's a been a mixed bag for the leader of the free world over the other side of the Atlantic. On the big one – impeach- ment – it's got to be considered a win. The outcome was never in doubt but it could potentially have become much uglier if the inquiry had voted to hear the testimony of witnesses. The Republican-controlled Senate would still have cleared Trump from any wrongdoing, but it would have been harder to justify that verdict to the outside Lest we forget If you thought our leaving the EU would spell the end of the Brexit hullabaloo, you obviously weren't paying close enough attention. We're barely a week into the calmer waters of "clarity" than it's all kicking o• again, with Boris declaring that we won't be signing up to any European rules, or have any truck with foreign courts, and if the EU doesn't like it, it can stu• it. We're back in no-deal territory, and Bo Jo's quite happy at the prospect. Is this a negotiation tactic, as some media outlets maintain? Or is the ultimate destination a hard Brexit, as it has always been, and the only job at hand for the government is to make sure the great British public blames "our friends and partners" overseas? It's impossible to know, and probably fruitless to try to work out. The only one with any clue is Boris himself, and since he's intent on playing both Good Cop and Bad Cop, we're not going to know the plot twist until the nal act. The nancial markets are clear: sterling took another dive at the beginning of the week following lobby brie ngs that Tough Guy Boris was back in town. UTILITY WEEK | 7TH - 13TH FEBRUARY 2020 | 31 Road to nowhere The word "smart" is being appended to all manner of things these days, whether or not it deserves the moniker. How long, wonders Discon- nector, before the term "smart motorway" is quietly retired? Not long, by the looks of it. Following a harrowing Panorama documentary last week on the dangers of mal- functioning smart motorways, transport secretary Grant Shapps announced a mora- torium on their deployment until further investigations ascertained whether a four- lane motorway with no hard shoulder was, a¥ er all, that smart an idea. Not many people say it is, even if it's done properly – which it hasn't been. And to cap it all, Edmund King, the president of the AA, last week pointed out that smart motorways were not suitable for electric vehicles or driverless vehicles and would have to be scrapped if there was a mass rollout of EVs. That was before Tuesday's announcement by the govern- ment that it was bringing forward the scrapping of sales of new petrol and diesel cars by ve years, to 2035. Thank goodness we found all this out before spanking billions of pounds. Oh, wait… load of celebratory Brexit-related tat, including £12 tea towels, £75 limited edition prints and £6 fridge magnets, all emblazoned with our tousle-haired PM and the slogan "Got Brexit done". copy of the With- drawal Agreement EU would spell the end of the obviously weren't paying

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