Thames Water bills will surge by £152 over the next five years in new blow to London households
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Thames Water bills will rise by more than a third to an average of £588 over the next five years despite its poor record on pollution and leaks. Water regulator Ofwat said the UK’s biggest water supplier will be allowed to hike it bills by £152, or 35%, by 2030 from £436 currently. The figures are before inflation and the rise in cash terms will be considerably higher.
It has asked to increase bills by 53% to an average of £667. However, Ofwat final determination decision is a softening in its stance. In July its said that its preliminary view would be to allow Thames to increase bills by 22%, equivalent to a £99 increase in the average bill to £535 by 2030.
Thames has said it needs to increase bills to spend heavily to maintain its ageing assets, prevent leaks and tackle pollution. Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed, said: “Under the Conservatives, our sewage system crumbled. They irresponsibly let water companies divert customers’ money to line the pockets of their bosses and shareholders.
“The public are right to be angry after they have been left to pay the price of Conservative failure. “This Labour Government will ringfence money earmarked for investment so it can never be diverted for bonuses and shareholder payouts. We will clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good.”.
