Category: privatisation

Opinion: Water under pressure – the case for renationalisation

By UNISON head of environment Donna Rowe-Merriman

Water is life – a basic human need and a critical public service. Yet across England, this precious resource has been in the hands of private companies for over 30 years, with disastrous consequences for customers, communities and the environment.

On the day that water regulator Ofwat announced hikes of an average of 36% over five years for consumers, England’s largest water company is on the verge of collapse, burdened with massive debt and embroiled in court battles. Elsewhere in England, over 50,000 homes, schools, hospitals and businesses are without water due to failing infrastructure.

Public good should come before private profit. It’s time to renationalise water companies.

A way forward

On 9 December, UNISON launched its water report in Parliament (see photo above, by Gary Schwartz), joined by senior UNISON activists from the water industry and Environment Agency, Labour MP Clive Lewis, parliamentarians and prominent academics, with speakers emphasising the need for a water sector that prioritises public health, environmental protection, and accountability.

Outlining a comprehensive roadmap for renationalisation, it highlights systemic issues in England’s privatised water sector.

When water services were privatised in England and Wales in 1989, it was sold to the public as a way to improve efficiency and attract investment. Since then, private water companies have raked in £72 billion in dividends for shareholders, while failing to invest adequately in infrastructure.

That is what Ofwat says today’s announcement of rises to bills is looking to address.

Household bills have risen by 40% in real terms and the regulator’s recent announcement to ringfence infrastructure – this only compounds the burden.

England’s rivers and beaches are in crisis, with companies spilling 3 million hours of raw sewage into waterways in 2022 alone. Only 14% of rivers meet good ecological standards.

Meanwhile, companies have built up a staggering £60 billion in debt since privatisation, with much of it used to pay shareholders.

A case study in the problems

Thames Water epitomises the issues plaguing the sector.

Despite managing the UK’s busiest water network, it loses 630 million litres of water daily – equivalent to 250 Olympic swimming pools.

Since 2017, the company has paid £32.4 million in fines for pollution, including dumping raw sewage into rivers.

It is saddled with £14 billion in debt, largely accrued to pay shareholders. In June 2023 it nearly collapsed, requiring a £750 million bailout from investors.

This is not an isolated case. Financial mismanagement, excessive shareholder payouts and environmental harm are endemic.

Failures of senior management in individual companies do not reflect the high standards of their employees, many of whom are UNISON members.

In addition, Ofwat was established to hold private companies accountable for fair pricing and environmental protection. It has failed, allowing companies to get away with poor performance, focusing on short-term price controls instead of long-term investment.

After a 20% price hike in July 2023, today’s announcement averages a 36% increase – closer to the demands of water companies, many of which are owned by foreign investors or private equity firms, and many of which prioritise profit over public service.

Renationalisation would eliminate the need to pay shareholders, allowing money to be reinvested into infrastructure and passed on to consumers as savings.

Public ownership can prioritise ecological restoration, ending the sewage scandal and ensuring clean, safe water for everyone. Removing the profit motive would allow water services to focus on long-term planning and sustainable investment, not short-term gain.

Public ownership isn’t just possible—it’s popular. A 2023 poll found that 66% of Britons support renationalising water, cutting across political and social divides.

UNISON will continue to pressure the government to make water security and renationalisation a key priority. It’s time to end the 30-year experiment of privatisation and put water back where it belongs – in the hands of the public.

Read the report: Clean Water – a case for public ownership

Water customers will be outraged that bills are rising again

The article Opinion: Water under pressure – the case for renationalisation first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Opinion: Water under pressure – the case for renationalisation

By UNISON head of environment Donna Rowe-Merriman

Water is life – a basic human need and a critical public service. Yet across England, this precious resource has been in the hands of private companies for over 30 years, with disastrous consequences for customers, communities and the environment.

On the day that water regulator Ofwat announced hikes of an average of 36% over five years for consumers, England’s largest water company is on the verge of collapse, burdened with massive debt and embroiled in court battles. Elsewhere in England, over 50,000 homes, schools, hospitals and businesses are without water due to failing infrastructure.

Public good should come before private profit. It’s time to renationalise water companies.

A way forward

On 9 December, UNISON launched its water report in Parliament (see photo above, by Gary Schwartz), joined by senior UNISON activists from the water industry and Environment Agency, Labour MP Clive Lewis, parliamentarians and prominent academics, with speakers emphasising the need for a water sector that prioritises public health, environmental protection, and accountability.

Outlining a comprehensive roadmap for renationalisation, it highlights systemic issues in England’s privatised water sector.

When water services were privatised in England and Wales in 1989, it was sold to the public as a way to improve efficiency and attract investment. Since then, private water companies have raked in £72 billion in dividends for shareholders, while failing to invest adequately in infrastructure.

That is what Ofwat says today’s announcement of rises to bills is looking to address.

Household bills have risen by 40% in real terms and the regulator’s recent announcement to ringfence infrastructure – this only compounds the burden.

England’s rivers and beaches are in crisis, with companies spilling 3 million hours of raw sewage into waterways in 2022 alone. Only 14% of rivers meet good ecological standards.

Meanwhile, companies have built up a staggering £60 billion in debt since privatisation, with much of it used to pay shareholders.

A case study in the problems

Thames Water epitomises the issues plaguing the sector.

Despite managing the UK’s busiest water network, it loses 630 million litres of water daily – equivalent to 250 Olympic swimming pools.

Since 2017, the company has paid £32.4 million in fines for pollution, including dumping raw sewage into rivers.

It is saddled with £14 billion in debt, largely accrued to pay shareholders. In June 2023 it nearly collapsed, requiring a £750 million bailout from investors.

This is not an isolated case. Financial mismanagement, excessive shareholder payouts and environmental harm are endemic.

Failures of senior management in individual companies do not reflect the high standards of their employees, many of whom are UNISON members.

In addition, Ofwat was established to hold private companies accountable for fair pricing and environmental protection. It has failed, allowing companies to get away with poor performance, focusing on short-term price controls instead of long-term investment.

After a 20% price hike in July 2023, today’s announcement averages a 36% increase – closer to the demands of water companies, many of which are owned by foreign investors or private equity firms, and many of which prioritise profit over public service.

Renationalisation would eliminate the need to pay shareholders, allowing money to be reinvested into infrastructure and passed on to consumers as savings.

Public ownership can prioritise ecological restoration, ending the sewage scandal and ensuring clean, safe water for everyone. Removing the profit motive would allow water services to focus on long-term planning and sustainable investment, not short-term gain.

Public ownership isn’t just possible—it’s popular. A 2023 poll found that 66% of Britons support renationalising water, cutting across political and social divides.

UNISON will continue to pressure the government to make water security and renationalisation a key priority. It’s time to end the 30-year experiment of privatisation and put water back where it belongs – in the hands of the public.

Read the report: Clean Water – a case for public ownership

Water customers will be outraged that bills are rising again

The article Opinion: Water under pressure – the case for renationalisation first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Why insourcing isn’t always a win

On the final day of UNISON’s health conference, delegates heard a series of debates on defending the NHS against privatisation.

Tam Hiddleston for the service group executive warned that, while “we invariably think of insourcing as a positive,” some insourcing “is about private operators being brought into the NHS.”

UNISON needs to be very careful to monitor “any wider implications for Agenda for Change pay and conditions,” he continued.

Chris from London noted: “What’s the point of insourcing people and you just change their uniforms?”

Moving a motion on mega trusts for the Eastern region, Glen Carrington (pictured above) highlighted the rising problems facing staff in such trusts in his region.

NHS England is pursuing trust mergers in an attempt to save money, “but after 14 long years of Tory cuts, has anyone ever looked to see what the impact is on staff?

“The chances of starting a shift in Cromer and ending up in London happens all too often,” said Mr Carrington. “Don’t let anyone tell you big is always better.”

In another motion, conference heard of staff left devastated at learning that their jobs were being outsourced.

Yet even as outsourced services have been shown to cause major problems, it is an approach that continues, and causes even more problems – not least in the increase of a “two or three or four-tier workforces” as contracts are passed from one company to another.

That situation is a “national scandal that the Tory government continues to be complicit in,” said one speaker.

Steady recruitment of healthcare students

Also on Wednesday morning, conference heard of the “steady recruitment of healthcare students” and agreed that “continuing to recruit healthcare students to UNISON is an essential part of a strategy for a strong UNISON presence in the NHS”, and welcomed the success of the union’s Future Healthcare Leaders programme.

The motion, from the national young members’ forum, noted that a recent survey of heathcare students had revealed increasing struggles with the cost of living crisis and the levels of financial support they received, with 35% agreeing that they might not be able to complete their studies because of the situation.

Among a raft of calls, conference urged the executive to:

  • engage with regional health committees, the strategic organising unit, the national young members’ forum to build and develop strategies for recruitment and organisation of healthcare students
  • campaign for better financial arrangements for healthcare students
  • work with the national women’s committee to explore the additional financial challenges facing healthcare students with childcare responsibilities.

The article Why insourcing isn’t always a win first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Why insourcing isn’t always a win

On the final day of UNISON’s health conference, delegates heard a series of debates on defending the NHS against privatisation.

Tam Hiddleston for the service group executive warned that, while “we invariably think of insourcing as a positive,” some insourcing “is about private operators being brought into the NHS.”

UNISON needs to be very careful to monitor “any wider implications for Agenda for Change pay and conditions,” he continued.

Chris from London noted: “What’s the point of insourcing people and you just change their uniforms?”

Moving a motion on mega trusts for the Eastern region, Glen Carrington (pictured above) highlighted the rising problems facing staff in such trusts in his region.

NHS England is pursuing trust mergers in an attempt to save money, “but after 14 long years of Tory cuts, has anyone ever looked to see what the impact is on staff?

“The chances of starting a shift in Cromer and ending up in London happens all too often,” said Mr Carrington. “Don’t let anyone tell you big is always better.”

In another motion, conference heard of staff left devastated at learning that their jobs were being outsourced.

Yet even as outsourced services have been shown to cause major problems, it is an approach that continues, and causes even more problems – not least in the increase of a “two or three or four-tier workforces” as contracts are passed from one company to another.

That situation is a “national scandal that the Tory government continues to be complicit in,” said one speaker.

Steady recruitment of healthcare students

Also on Wednesday morning, conference heard of the “steady recruitment of healthcare students” and agreed that “continuing to recruit healthcare students to UNISON is an essential part of a strategy for a strong UNISON presence in the NHS”, and welcomed the success of the union’s Future Healthcare Leaders programme.

The motion, from the national young members’ forum, noted that a recent survey of heathcare students had revealed increasing struggles with the cost of living crisis and the levels of financial support they received, with 35% agreeing that they might not be able to complete their studies because of the situation.

Among a raft of calls, conference urged the executive to:

  • engage with regional health committees, the strategic organising unit, the national young members’ forum to build and develop strategies for recruitment and organisation of healthcare students
  • campaign for better financial arrangements for healthcare students
  • work with the national women’s committee to explore the additional financial challenges facing healthcare students with childcare responsibilities.

The article Why insourcing isn’t always a win first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Opinion: Thames Water makes case for renationalisation … now!

By UNISON’s head of environment, Donna Rowe-Merriman

Shadowy overseas private equity firms have sucked all the good out of Thames Water and saddled it with billions of pounds of debt. So reports that it is scrambling to find extra cash, after handing out millions of pounds to shareholders and bonuses to top bosses in recent years, are hardly surprising.

Even its shareholders won’t keep it afloat, having refused to pay £500m by the end of the month, saying regulatory requirements make its business plan “uninvestable”, and insisting that bills must go up – company boss Chris Weston told the BBC today that they need to rise by 40%.

It’s clear that the business model for Thames Water has failed and the company is unviable.

The company is privately owned by a mix of people and businesses. The consortium of pension funds and sovereign wealth funds owns the entire business. The largest shareholder, as of July 2023, is the Canadian pension fund Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (Omers) with approximately 32%.

Mr Weston also stated that it was “business as usual” at the company. The business appears to be lurching from one crisis to another, leaving staff with an uncertain future and customers facing ever more massive bills.

In the 21st century, the issue of water pollution is a national disgrace. The government and regulator have failed to stop water companies to pollute our rivers, canals and coastline.

Saturday’s Boat Race organisers have issued new safety guidance for the races, warning rowers not to enter the water and to cover any open wounds, after high levels of E.coli bacteria were found on the River Thames course.

Provision of water should never have been privatised, allowing millions to be taken out of the industry to line the pockets of shareholders and company executives, while infrastructure was allowed to crumble.

The government must intervene and take control of a business and renationalise Thames Water and now.

The article Opinion: Thames Water makes case for renationalisation … now! first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Opinion: Thames Water makes case for renationalisation … now!

By UNISON’s head of environment, Donna Rowe-Merriman

Shadowy overseas private equity firms have sucked all the good out of Thames Water and saddled it with billions of pounds of debt. So reports that it is scrambling to find extra cash, after handing out millions of pounds to shareholders and bonuses to top bosses in recent years, are hardly surprising.

Even its shareholders won’t keep it afloat, having refused to pay £500m by the end of the month, saying regulatory requirements make its business plan “uninvestable”, and insisting that bills must go up – company boss Chris Weston told the BBC today that they need to rise by 40%.

It’s clear that the business model for Thames Water has failed and the company is unviable.

The company is privately owned by a mix of people and businesses. The consortium of pension funds and sovereign wealth funds owns the entire business. The largest shareholder, as of July 2023, is the Canadian pension fund Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (Omers) with approximately 32%.

Mr Weston also stated that it was “business as usual” at the company. The business appears to be lurching from one crisis to another, leaving staff with an uncertain future and customers facing ever more massive bills.

In the 21st century, the issue of water pollution is a national disgrace. The government and regulator have failed to stop water companies to pollute our rivers, canals and coastline.

Saturday’s Boat Race organisers have issued new safety guidance for the races, warning rowers not to enter the water and to cover any open wounds, after high levels of E.coli bacteria were found on the River Thames course.

Provision of water should never have been privatised, allowing millions to be taken out of the industry to line the pockets of shareholders and company executives, while infrastructure was allowed to crumble.

The government must intervene and take control of a business and renationalise Thames Water and now.

The article Opinion: Thames Water makes case for renationalisation … now! first appeared on the UNISON National site.

UNISON wins huge settlement for school meals workers

After a three-year battle, UNISON members working for a catering company in the North West have won a significant wages settlement.

In December 2020, in the midst of the second COVID-19 lockdown, school meals staff employed by Dolce were told that their hours would be reduced by an average of 20-25%, with some as much as 40%, and others were told they would be moved to zero-hours contracts.

Many were still expected to work the hours that they were originally contracted to do; UNISON national officer Leigh Powell explained: “Workers on 30-hour contracts saw their hours cut to 25 and were told that, if they ended up working 30, that extra five would have to be claimed as overtime.”

The changes were imposed by the employer right before Christmas, which resulted in an immediate pay cut for workers with longer-term implications for their holiday and sick pay.

The majority of workers affected are low-paid, female workers.

Ms Powell continued: “The employer’s argument was that, on returning to school after the COVID-19 lockdowns, school meals uptake was low and therefore profits were too low.”

UNISON lawyers brought a claim of unauthorised deduction of wages on behalf of 50 workers and won thousands of pounds for UNISON members at Dolce. Further to this, 23 additional workers who had TUPE-transferred to different employers have also settled for a substantial sum.

UNISON Salford City branch secretary Diane Ogg said: “Members at Salford UNISON are ecstatic they have won their legal claim against their employer. These are people who were classed as frontline workers in the pandemic, and had to endure immense stress at the hands of an employer who informed them that their hours and pay would be cut.”

“Through sheer determination and with the support of UNISON, these workers have fought for their rights and claimed a victory.”

Ms Powell said: “Whilst we are delighted that our members have got the money they are due, this issue highlights how lower-paid workers, particularly women, are losing out in the fragmented market that our school meals service has been reduced to.

“Dolce, like any other business, was seeking to maintain profits and it tried to do so at the expense of the workforce. We should be spending public money on ensuring children are fed well, not directing it into the hands of private shareholders.”

The article UNISON wins huge settlement for school meals workers first appeared on the UNISON National site.

UNISON wins huge settlement for school meals workers

After a three-year battle, UNISON members working for a catering company in the North West have won a significant wages settlement.

In December 2020, in the midst of the second COVID-19 lockdown, school meals staff employed by Dolce were told that their hours would be reduced by an average of 20-25%, with some as much as 40%, and others were told they would be moved to zero-hours contracts.

Many were still expected to work the hours that they were originally contracted to do; UNISON national officer Leigh Powell explained: “Workers on 30-hour contracts saw their hours cut to 25 and were told that, if they ended up working 30, that extra five would have to be claimed as overtime.”

The changes were imposed by the employer right before Christmas, which resulted in an immediate pay cut for workers with longer-term implications for their holiday and sick pay.

The majority of workers affected are low-paid, female workers.

Ms Powell continued: “The employer’s argument was that, on returning to school after the COVID-19 lockdowns, school meals uptake was low and therefore profits were too low.”

UNISON lawyers brought a claim of unauthorised deduction of wages on behalf of 50 workers and won thousands of pounds for UNISON members at Dolce. Further to this, 23 additional workers who had TUPE-transferred to different employers have also settled for a substantial sum.

UNISON Salford City branch secretary Diane Ogg said: “Members at Salford UNISON are ecstatic they have won their legal claim against their employer. These are people who were classed as frontline workers in the pandemic, and had to endure immense stress at the hands of an employer who informed them that their hours and pay would be cut.”

“Through sheer determination and with the support of UNISON, these workers have fought for their rights and claimed a victory.”

Ms Powell said: “Whilst we are delighted that our members have got the money they are due, this issue highlights how lower-paid workers, particularly women, are losing out in the fragmented market that our school meals service has been reduced to.

“Dolce, like any other business, was seeking to maintain profits and it tried to do so at the expense of the workforce. We should be spending public money on ensuring children are fed well, not directing it into the hands of private shareholders.”

The article UNISON wins huge settlement for school meals workers first appeared on the UNISON National site.

NHS data: help stop the sell-off

NHS England is set to hand over its patient data and share of a £480m contract to US company Palantir in a plan to create a new database.

This marks the biggest IT contract the NHS has ever awarded.

Palantir is a spy technology firm that works with intelligence and military agencies in the UK and US, including the CIA.

UNISON is working alongside the campaigning organisation Foxglove to help challenge this. An emergency petition to health secretary Victoria Atkins has been set up, which UNISON members are invited to sign and share.

Sign the petition here

The petition calls on Ms Atkins to cancel the contract and design an NHS data platform that keeps the NHS public, respects patient choice and protects privacy.

UNISON policy officer Guy Collis said: “NHS data is far too important to be sold off in this way and patients are rightly concerned. It’s not too late for a rethink.”

The article NHS data: help stop the sell-off first appeared on the UNISON National site.

NHS data: help stop the sell-off

NHS England is set to hand over its patient data and share of a £480m contract to US company Palantir in a plan to create a new database.

This marks the biggest IT contract the NHS has ever awarded.

Palantir is a spy technology firm that works with intelligence and military agencies in the UK and US, including the CIA.

UNISON is working alongside the campaigning organisation Foxglove to help challenge this. An emergency petition to health secretary Victoria Atkins has been set up, which UNISON members are invited to sign and share.

Sign the petition here

The petition calls on Ms Atkins to cancel the contract and design an NHS data platform that keeps the NHS public, respects patient choice and protects privacy.

UNISON policy officer Guy Collis said: “NHS data is far too important to be sold off in this way and patients are rightly concerned. It’s not too late for a rethink.”

The article NHS data: help stop the sell-off first appeared on the UNISON National site.