We have seen a long list of these bodies let people down, with hapless ministers then held to account for their failings.
Since privatisation, productivity is up 64 per cent, costs down 27 per cent, and bills £120 lower than they would otherwise have been. £190 billion has been invested since 1989.
Labour and the Liberal Democrats will continue to beat us with the ‘sewage stick’ unless we seize the initiative and take our communities with us. That is exactly what I have done in Southend.
By prioritizing data collection, enacting relevant policies, and mandating decisive actions, significant strides have been made in safeguarding and enhancing England’s water resources.
If we are to expect an army of industrious self-taught volunteers to be the first line of defence to mitigate environmental extremes, the least we could do is provide them with the resources to fix the problem whilst the sun is (literally) shining.
There is simply no good reason to suppose that public ownership would lead to better management and higher investment when historically it has produced the opposite.
In my area, ill-judged EU rules have helped see all development blocked for nine years, exacerbating the housing crisis whilst doing little to actually protect the environment.
Making Cambridge a global science city needs to be a cross-governmental mission, rather than one left just to the housing department
Our deputy editor joins the Institute for Government to talk about Thames Water, Net Zero, and Boris Johnson’s new column.
Most of us can get used to dysfunction in the busy and familiar setting of our day-to-day lives. But a change of scene offers a different perspective.
To the extent the opposition parties have proposals, they offer wildly unrealistic timescales – and neglect to mention the huge increases in household bills they would necessitate.
William Gladstone once complained that the Liberals were washed from office by a “torrent of gin and beer”. Tory MPs fear they face a similar – if smellier – fate if the Government doesn’t get tough on the water companies.
Both the short and long term implications of this rise are baleful. Demography is destiny – and the Government should act.
Conservative messaging implies an implicit belief that there are no major state functions ripe for reform in any fiscal repair.
Water is not currently tested between September and May, when tourism is still strong in Devon. Inaccurate information about water quality is deterring swimmers and surfers from taking the plunge and hurting the local economy.