As water and sewerage bills increase by an average of 2 per cent for homes in England and Wales from today (1 April), the GMB union has reignited calls to take the industry back into public ownership.
Prices will vary by region but average annual costs will rise to £415, according to details released by Water UK in February. This amounts to a below inflation rise of £8 on last year’s average.
The change to water bills comes in tandem with a host of other price hikes today, including energy bills as Ofgem’s revised price cap comes into effect.
Stuart Fegan, national officer for GMB, the UK’s fourth largest trade union, said: “For private water companies to hike up bills again is insulting to customers and begs the question again whether privatisation has failed.
“Billions of litres of water are wasted every day, while bosses trouser millions and shareholders continue to get rich on dividends from our natural resource.
“Thirty years on from privatisation, it’s clear it is not working. It’s time to take back the tap and bring our water sector back into public hands.”
In June last year, GMB launched its “Take Back the Tap” campaign to renationalise the water industry, which the Labour party plans to do if it comes to power.
At the time Water UK announced the bill increase, it stressed the rise comes as part of the sixth year in a row that the average bill change has been less than inflation. This means that the real cost of water is decreasing, by almost five per cent between 2015 and 2020 according to its figures.
The trade body said water companies in England and Wales will invest more than £8 billion this year – the investment comes in the fifth year of a £44 billion spending commitment from 2015 to 2020.
Michael Roberts, chief executive of Water UK said: “By 2025 there will have been over a decade of falling bills once inflation is taken into account.”
The investment is expected to cut 370 million litres a day leaking from pipes, ensure nearly 5,000 fewer properties will be flooded with sewer water and 50 beaches are cleaner.
As well as this, Water UK says that companies are on track to provide financial support for an additional one million people by 2020.
A total of 14 companies also submitted their revised business plans to Ofwat today for the 2019 price review. At the end of January only three of the 17 companies in England and Wales (Severn Trent, South West, and United Utilities) had their business plans deemed acceptable by the regulator.