At a time when utility companies are living under the shadow of threatened renationlisation, the last thing the sector needs is another scandal. Southern Water was yesterday given a record £126 million in penalties by Ofwat, the industry regulator, after a series of failures arising from a lack of investment. Employees manipulated wastewater samples, enabling the company to misreport information to the watchdog. Customers across Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight will receive a rebate of £61 on their water bill this year. The risk is that this latest scandal, less than a year after Thames Water was fined for spilling sewage into an Oxfordshire brook, will further undermine trust in the privatised utility model.

Source: The Times June 25, 2019 23:03 UTC