MP Raises Local Water Supply Issues in Parliament
Andy Slaughter says 'no one will miss the asset strippers at Thames Water'
'All we want is working infrastructure and good customer service at a reasonable cost'. Picture: Andy Slaughter
July 3, 2023
Hammersmith MP Andy Slaughter brought up the issue of interrupted water supply and flooding in his constituency during a debate in the House of Commons this Wednesday (28 June).
For several days some residents of the W6, W12 and W14 postcode areas have had to do without running water or experienced low pressure after a number of mains burst in the area.
Problems continued through to the day following the MP’s speech but, according to Thames Water’s web site they are now resolved.
Mr Slaughter was speaking as concern increased about Thames Water’s ability to service its debts. The firm, which provides water to around one in four people in Britain, is facing questions over its future, as it grapples with a £14bn debt pile.
He told the Commons, “Today, not for the first time, most of my constituents have had little or no water supply. Two years ago, not for the first time, hundreds of my constituents had their homes flooded with raw sewage. Year after year Thames Water has failed its customers while obscenely rewarding its management and shareholders. No one will miss the asset strippers at Thames Water if they go under. All we want is working infrastructure and good customer service at a reasonable cost. Is that too much to ask.”
Water supply interruptions have been endemic in the local area which has been attributed to the aged condition of local infrastructure.
This has also led to significant flooding in recent years in areas such as Brackenbury, Hammersmith Grove and Askew Village.
Flooding in Cambridge Grove, Hammersmith
In July 2021 there was widespread flooding across the area with sewage inundating basements in homes and businesses. In response Thames Water installed either Non-Return Valves or instituted FLIPs - short for flooding local improvement project - and have already carried out some work in particular streets to install NRVs and to provide trunk sewer flaps which stops foul water washing up onto street level.
Local resident groups have called for SuDs (sustainable underground drainage systems) to be installed in the area to provide a robust solution to the problem which is expected to become more acute due to the impact of climate change.
However significant spending on flood resilience in the area has become less likely due to the financial difficulties of Thames Water which have given rise to renewed calls to renationalise the water industry that was privatised under Margaret Thatcher,
The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has said the crisis at Thames Water proves that “privatising basic utilities hasn’t worked”, as he criticised the monopoly enjoyed by the company.
Speaking at the annual State of London Debate on Thursday night (29 June), the mayor said the Government had failed to properly regulate the company.
“If evidence was required that privatising basic utilities hasn’t worked, this is it,” said Mr Khan.
“When things are good, their shareholders reap massive dividends. When they need investment, they make us pay more with our water bills. Well, there’s something wrong there, right?”
He added, “It’s a monopoly. What are you going to do? Change from Thames Water to somebody else? You can’t, right? They’ve got you over a barrel.
“That’s a failure of the Government not regulating monopolies, whether it’s Thames Water, or some of the train operating companies.”
Bringing water companies into public ownership is not Labour’s policy nationally, but Mr Khan said he was not in favour of nationalising Thames Water immediately.
“I don’t think we should be using our money to pay off shareholders. That’s not the best use of taxpayers’ money,” the mayor said.
“If it comes up to the contracts being renewed, like with the rail companies – yeah, nationalise them.”
A Government source clarified afterwards that, unlike train companies, water companies do not renew their contracts periodically, and instead hold indefinite licences to operate.
Mr Khan said City Hall has no powers of its own to bring Thames Water into public ownership, and that he would be concerned about taking over the company’s debts.
“If the Government was to – for example, theoretically speaking – write off all the debts, [and] allow us to keep the cash balances in Thames Water, I’d be interested,” he said.
Thames Water has said it has a “strong liquidity position including £4.4bn of cash and committed funding” and is working “constructively” with shareholders while keeping the regulator, Ofwat, informed of progress.
The company added that it “remains focused on delivering for our customers, the environment and stakeholders”.
If the firm cannot secure additional funding, it could be temporarily taken over by the Government until a new buyer is found, in a special administration regime (SAR).
Commentators have said that, even in the event of a financial collapse of Thames Water, it is unlikely that the Super Sewer project designed to bring cleaner water to the Thames, will be abandoned.
A spokeswoman at the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) said, “Ofwat monitors the financial position of all water companies, ensuring they take action when long term financial resilience needs to be strengthened.
“It is the role of regulators to scrutinise industry, which is why Ofwat continues to monitor the financial position of all water and wastewater companies.”
A Thames Water spokesperson said, "We are sorry to customers who recently experienced low pressure and no water in the Hammersmith and West Kensington areas. On Wednesday 28 June, our engineer carried out investigations and found a faulty pressure valve on one of our main water pipes, which serves the local area. Tankers were sent to the area as a precaution, to keep taps flowing for residents and businesses.
“The repair was successfully carried out on Friday 30 June and all customers should now be in supply. We would urge any customers experiencing no water or low pressure to call our customer service team on 0800 316 9800 for assistance."
“Finding and fixing leaks is a top priority. In 2022/23 we fixed a total of 66,896 leaks, compared with 61,671 in 2021/22.
“We’re repairing over 1,300 leaks per week – that’s one leak every 7.5 minutes - whether visible or below ground. We have over 480 people working to fix leaks with activity taking place 7 days a week and over 400 people working round the clock and mainly overnight to detect leaks not yet appearing at ground level.
“We’ve recently committed an additional £700m to improve water supplies. In London, we’re replacing 70 miles of our leakiest water mains pipes, having met additional requirements set out by our industry regulator.”
Written with contributions from Noah Vickers – Local Democracy Reporter
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