Is Thames Water about to collapse?

[SpookyFrank]

If there weren't so many leaks the reservoirs wouldn't get low enough to impose a hosepipe ban.

Privatisation of water happened in 1989.

Guess how many new reservoirs have been built in England in that time?

None.

Ask the water companies about supply security and they love talking about fixing leaks, because that's a lot cheaper for them to do than actually increasing storage capacity in line with population growth.

 

[brogdale]

Another Guardian report on this very special neoliberal outfit:

 

[BristolEcho]

Fucking pricks. That's about all I can really say.

 

[teqniq]

Please sign and share:

Petition: Nationalise the UK water industry

I would like to see the government make plans to gradually nationalise the UK water industry.

petition.parliament.uk

 

[brogdale]

Please sign and share:

Petition: Nationalise the UK water industry

I would like to see the government make plans to gradually nationalise the UK water industry.

petition.parliament.uk

I'd need convincing of the inclusion of the word "gradually" and omission of the term "expropriation".

 

[Sue]

Please sign and share:

Petition: Nationalise the UK water industry

I would like to see the government make plans to gradually nationalise the UK water industry.

petition.parliament.uk

Should be England and Wales as it already is in Scotland/NI.

 

[TopCat]

End times for the failed privatisation of our water.

Taxpayers about to be totally shafted. One of the biggest acts of theft in my lifetime.

Thames Water credit rating slashed as administrators approached

Moody’s changes outlook on firm from stable to negative as financial plans ‘do not provide attractive risk-return balance’

www.theguardian.com

 

[wemakeyousoundb]

it worked well for the profiteers though

 

[brogdale]

End times for the failed privatisation of our water.

Taxpayers about to be totally shafted. One of the biggest acts of theft in my lifetime.

Thames Water credit rating slashed as administrators approached

Moody’s changes outlook on firm from stable to negative as financial plans ‘do not provide attractive risk-return balance’

www.theguardian.com

Yes, the legalised systemic thefts that are the privatised natural monopolies are so endemically entrenched within the political psyche that the perpetrators feel able to be completely brazen about their MO:

Thames Water’s potential rescuers are seeking a clean break with the company’s past before they commit fresh funds, with some demanding a temporary renationalisation to help cut debts and replace bosses, the Guardian can reveal.

So the "rescuers" will only consider privatising the gains after the losses, due to rapacious greed have been, socialised.

 

[SpookyFrank]

So even a temporary 'nationalisation' would actually be run by an accountancy firm. Whose first priority will be, as it always is, paying themselves a disgustingly large fee for their trouble.

 

[brogdale]

So even a temporary 'nationalisation' would actually be run by an accountancy firm. Whose first priority will be, as it always is, paying themselves a disgustingly large fee for their trouble.

Exactly. And the further neoliberal genius here being that the public debt incurred by wiping the private debt will see more interest earned by the very financial corporations that own/part own the natural monopolies.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Interesting that all the talk is of debt to investors and not debt to the public on account of services paid for but never provided. The liabilities from the decrepit infrastructure, that's basically money that has been stolen but that appears on no balance sheet and will never be part of any 'rescue' deal, never repaid or even acknowledged in a million years.