(by Karma Loveday) Four former Southern Water staff, including its 2011-2016 chief executive Matthew Wright, appeared in court on Friday charged with conspiracy to defraud – a common law offence carrying a maximum ten-year prison term. It is alleged that between 1 January 2012 and 31 December 2017 the individuals conspired to defraud the Environment Agency and Ofwat through the implementation of artificial no-flow events at wastewater treatment works to manipulate the operato

(by Karma Loveday) Welsh Water has lifted the hosepipe ban that has been in place for around 33,000 properties across mid and south Ceredigion, parts of north Pembrokeshire and north Carmarthenshire. This followed recovery in treated water storage levels, and decreased demand linked to the ban, as well as to lower temperatures, increased rainfall and the end of the summer tourist season. The company thanked its customers for their contribution while the ban was in place. In E

(by Karma Loveday) Infrastructure minister Liz Kimmins has commissioned a forensic audit into governance systems at Northern Ireland Water. Key areas of focus are expected to be HR, contract procurement visibility and whistleblowing. In a written statement to the Northern Ireland Assembly, Kimmins said: “Regrettably, there are a number of issues which are ongoing in NI Water, some of which have been the subject of NI Water investigations and have already resulted in the need

(by Karma Loveday) The Good Law Project (GLP) has called on Ofwat to "take appropriate steps to ensure that the public are not misled by legal inaccuracies with respect to the availability, purpose or mechanics of the special administration process for Thames”. The legal campaigner said it was moved to write to the regulator in light of media reports which cite Defra ministers’ reasons for not putting Thames Water into special administration. GLP said the first oft-cited reas

(by Verity Mitchell) Estelle Brachlianoff, chief executive of Veolia, has told the BBC that her company would consider running Thames Water if it were taken into public ownership. Private companies operating assets owned by the state is a familiar model for Veolia in France, although it owns regulated water assets in the US. Running renationalised Thames under contract – its drinking water facilities, wastewater treatment plants and networks – "could be an option, yes,” Brach

(by Karma Loveday) A public control task force has been set up by the new Office for the Prime Minister and Cabinet to address “the failure of many privatised utilities to deliver basic services at a fair price”. This is one of three new task forces that will operate across central government departments and local government, including with regional mayors as part of the devolution agenda. The other two focus areas are cost of living – especially challenging everyday rip-offs

(by Verity Mitchell) South East Water has aborted plans to issue a bond of around £200m after insufficient investor interest. The company cited the volatile political and regulatory backdrop as a reason for the sluggish investor response that followed its roadshow to debt investors last week. But the firm’s significant operational challenges may also have contributed to a lack of debt investor interest. South East Water has £150m of revolving credit facilities in place to cov

(by Karma Loveday) Portsmouth Water last week showed environment secretary Dame Angela Eagle work to date on the Havant Thicket reservoir in Hampshire, as the National Drought Group (NDG) met to discuss the ongoing drought situation. No drought status changes were made: 71.3% of England remains in drought, with 30m people affected by usage restrictions. July and August were dry months with 10% and 78% of rainfall respectively. The NDG reported that rivers had responded to the

(by Karma Loveday) Ofwat’s Water Innovation Fund has launched its seventh Breakthrough Challenge, with up to £50m available for collaborative projects tackling the water sector's hardest problems, from forever chemicals and storm overflows to leakage and river health. The funding will be awarded through two streams – the winners of which will be announced in May 2027: The Catalyst stream will award partnerships seeking between £150,000 and £2m. It will close for entries on 5

(by Karma Loveday) The Environmental Principles Policy Statement (EPPS), designed to put the environment at the heart of policymaking, came into effect last week for the Northern Ireland Executive. Government ministers and officials now have a legal duty to consider the potential positive and negative effects on the environment of policy choices. The EPPS covers five environmental principles set out in law, including the polluter pays principle. The Country Land and Business