this post was submitted on 20 Aug 2024
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UK Infrastructure

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[–] frazorth 30 points 3 months ago (1 children)

The water company, which has said it could run out of cash by next June, had asked the regulator for permission to charge customers £156.6m through bills to plug the pension shortfall.

I think the phrase is "fuck you".

[–] Mex 15 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] frazorth 19 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Its almost like handing out control of something as critical and a natural monopoly as water supplies to the Saudi's is a bad idea.

FYI they also paid their Saudi overlords £37 million earlier this year.

The Aussie owners before them milked it and generated most of this debt.

[–] icerunner_origin@startrek.website 21 points 3 months ago (1 children)

At what point can we start talking about prosecuting current and former company directors?

[–] Streamwave 3 points 3 months ago

Well, bit of good news for you there – included in Labour's Kings Speech was a bill to make CEOs of water companies individually criminally liable in egregious cases of sewage pollution etc.

[–] Buelldozer@lemmy.today 21 points 3 months ago (3 children)

"In June, the Guardian revealed that Thames’ board approved a £150m dividend ..."

So they approved a 150m dividend while knowing they had a 156m shortfall in their pension system. What the...

[–] frazorth 5 points 3 months ago

That was after the £37m dividend they paid their owners.

[–] slazer2au@lemmy.world 4 points 3 months ago

Welcome to capitalism. Where the only people to win are the shareholders.

[–] Streamwave 3 points 3 months ago

IIRC, since privatisation the total amount of water company debt is roughly equivalent to the total amount paid out in shareholder dividends in the same timeframe

[–] casmael@lemm.ee 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

(((Nationalise))) (((Water))) (((companies)))

[–] rayquetzalcoatl@lemmy.world 2 points 3 months ago

Not sure about the brackets mate 😬