Utility Week

w w w . u t i l i t y w e e k l i v e . c o . u k MAKING SURE THE PUBLIC INTEREST IS NOT LOST IN TRANSLATION Sharon Darcy, director, and Francesca Moll, writer, at environment think-tank Sustainability First "Before we create the energy and water systems of the fu- ture, we have to ensure we're all on the same page. How do we hear the public interest voice in the energy and water sectors? It isn't always easy to have a construc ve discussion. Rightly or wrongly there is a feeling that voices of 'ordinary people' remain unheard at the heart of the energy and water industries. Companies faced with this charge may see things through another lens; how best to meet the challenges of climate, socio- demographic and technolog- ical change while opera ng under an intense poli cal spotlight and delivering a sig- nificant amount of policy and regulatory change. Govern- ment and regulators may have a different perspec ve again, o en focused on the need to address short-term affordabil- ity pressures within electoral and regulatory cycles. Given such divergence, how do we find a way forward? What does fairness look like? Who is responsible? And how do we ensure we're future-proofing our energy and water systems so that they con nue to serve majority needs in the future? Fairness, a er all, is relevant not only within genera ons but also between genera ons. And these ques ons have never been more vital. Energy and water face huge upheaval. With the technological revolu- on represented by digi sa on and the smart energy meter rollout, a polarised poli cal mood, the need to prepare for a low-carbon future and the risks represented by climate change, it is clear the stakes are high. To navigate through this, society needs to agree some basic defini ons, develop a common language and begin to build consensus on broad direc ons of travel. Without this, misunderstandings can result and it can be difficult to make progress. With this in mind, how discussions about energy and water are framed is crucial. It was with this in mind that Sustainability First set up our New-Pin project in 2015. We brought together ci zen, consumer and environmental representa ves with regula- tors, government represent- a ves and energy and water companies, to encourage frank and construc ve discussion on the hard topics in the sectors today. These different interests can some mes find a win-win solu on. However, this is not always possible. It's impor- tant to recognise there will some mes be conflic ng interests and that these need to be balanced in a manner that is as transparent and fair as possible. To begin this process, we start- ed with a 'Straw Man' defini- on of the public interest: the public interest is the aggregate well-being of the general pub- lic, both short and long term. It comprises the combined inter- ests of consumers, ci zens, the environment and investors for both today and tomorrow. Over the course of three years and ten New-Pin workshops, we have tested and refined this defini on with our par c- ipants, and through a process of delibera ve engagement, further developed it into a New-Pin Public interest dash- board. This sets out desirable long-term public interest outcomes. New-Pin has started to build consensus around a public interest 'voice' for water and energy. However, this is something that needs to be con nually worked at." This ar cle can be read in full at: www.u lityweeklive.co.uk P R E S E N T S 8 | 4TH - 10TH MAY 2018 | UTILITY WEEK P R E S E N T S

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