Following the deadline for water companies to submit their business plans to the regulator on Monday, Ross said there was no cause for concern on the financial position of any of them.
During a quizzing from the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee (EFRA), Ross said companies with a high level of debt would “bear the costs associated with that choice” and that corporate capital structure choices were “very much at the risk of shareholders and not at the risk of customers.”
“The companies’ corporate capital structures are a matter for them to choose. They bear the risk associated with that choice and one thing that we are confident in, is that if the worst happens and the company does get into financial difficulty, there is a really robust system there of special administration.
“This will ensure that customers are held harmless so the taps will continue to turn, the loos will continue to flush and services will continue to be provided while the shareholders end up having to sell those assets on to another buyer in order to get themselves out of financial difficulties,” she said.