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UTILITY WEEK | 20TH - 26TH NOVEMBER 2015 | 3 Leader Ellen Bennett This week 4 | Seven days 6 | People & Opinion 8 | Interview Barbara Frost, chief executive, WaterAid 12 Policy & Regulation 12 | News Osborne: National Grid faces terror attack threat 13 | Analysis The comprehensive spending review 14 | Market view The competitive onshore transmission operator regime 15 Finance & Investment 15 | News Renewables push SSE profits up 16 | Analysis Are China and the UK a perfect match for investment? 18 Operations & Assets 18 | High viz The Atkins CIWEM Environmental Photographer of the Year 20 | Analysis 'Flushable' wet wipes are a menace for sewerage companies 21 | Market view The danger of cyber attack 22 | Market view Adhere to equality legislation 23 Customers 23 | News Most UU crypto payments made 24 | Analysis GDNs and carbon monoxide 27 Markets & Trading 27 | News DSR hit by blackout 'fear tactics' 28 | Market view Supply crunch was a wake-up call 30 Community 31 | Disconnector Tories mean business on infrastructure Chancellor George Osborne means business. There was good news this week for mega-projects, with two aligned announcements. The first, a call for evidence from the National Infrastructure Commis- sion (NIC); the second, the unveiling of the new Infrastructure and Projects Authority. Both bodies will report directly into the Treasury. A look at the detail reveals Osborne's priorities. The Treasury has its eye on electricity interconnection and storage, with Lord Adonis's NIC due to report back on the topic before next year's Budget. It has called for evidence on the right level of interconnection, barriers to electricity storage – and the small matter of whether the UK needs an independent system operator. The implications are potentially huge, and it looks as though the Treasury will be calling the shots. While the NIC rules what infrastructure the UK needs, the Infra- structure and Projects Authority will deliver it. The new body, to be born out of the merger of Infrastructure UK and the Major Projects Authority, will bring together government expertise in the financing and delivery of "major economic projects". Step forward the Thames Tideway Tunnel, and no doubt in due course Hinkley Point C. Meanwhile, as Utility Week goes to press, energy secretary Amber Rudd is expected to announce a "reset" of the government's energy policy. The clarity this promises cannot come a moment too soon. Since the Conservatives swept to power this spring, there has been widespread confusion over what their energy policy, and indeed their energy priorities, are. This has not been helped by the sudden withdrawal of various renewables subsidies, creating an atmosphere of anxiety and distrust among industry and investors. There are also question marks over the role of the Department of Energy and Climate Change (Decc). You could argue that the Treasury is cherry-picking the key decisions for itself. Decc could be further hamstrung by the cull of 200 staff rumoured this week, as the Treasury's cuts are felt. The direction of travel on energy policy is clear. Security of supply is top of the trilemma and it seems that the Conservative government is putting affordability at second place, above the third objective of sustainability. This has been on the cards ever since former Labour leader Ed Miliband caught the public mood in 2013 with his pledge to freeze energy prices, if elected. There's nothing wrong with pragmatic energy policy – and of course, the sums must add up. But let's hope that the Conservative government brings the same long-term vision to its energy policy- making as to its infrastructure ambitions. Ellen Bennett, Editor ellen.bennett@fav-house.com GAS 21 | Market view The danger of cyber attack 24 | Analysis GDNs and carbon monoxide 27 | News Demand to rise 30% as temperatures dip WATER 8 | Interview Barbara Frost, chief executive, WaterAid 18 | High viz The Atkins CIWEM Environmental Photographer of the Year 20 | Analysis 'Flushable' wet wipes are a menace for sewerage companies 23 | News Most UU crypto payments made ELECTRICITY 14 | Market view The competitive onshore transmission operator regime 27 | News Blackout 'fear tactics' may hinder DSR drive ENERGY 13 | Analysis The CSR 15 | News Renewables push up SSE profits 16 | Analysis Are China and the UK a perfect match for investment? 22 | Market view Don't fall foul of equality legislation OpOwer: Eon UK rebuilt trust with cus- tomer engagement and digital transformation. http://bit.ly/1M8xxD3 Knowledge worth keeping Visit the Downloads section of Utility Week's website http://www.utilityweek.co.uk/ downloads Bain & Company: Utilities 2015: A policy positioning paper http://bit.ly/1jANeGB