The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee will continue its inquiry on the work of Ofwat, the UK’s water regulator, by taking evidence from industry and infrastructure investment experts.

The session will take place on tomorrow and can be followed live on Parliament TV.

Giving evidence from 10:30am – 11:30am will be:

• Christine McGourty - Chief Executive, Water UK
• Stuart Colville, Director of Policy - Water UK

Possible questions include:

• How well does Ofwat manage trade-offs between its objectives, particularly in relation to the tension between long-term investment and customer bills, and is the guidance it receives from the Government in its Strategic Policy Statement adequate?
• How well does Ofwat work with other regulators and authorities to meet shared challenges? In particular, does overlap or underlap between Ofwat and the Environment Agency lead to confusion and delay in tackling issues such as water pollution incidents or the commitment to net zero?
• What should Ofwat and the industry be doing to engage consumers in their own water usage and other related behaviours, such as the flushing of wet wipes?

Giving evidence from 11.30am – 12.30pm will be:

Lawrence Slade CEO, Global Infrastructure Investor Association

Possible questions include:

• How attractive is the UK water sector to investors? How does its water sector compare to other countries’, and to other utilities sectors in the UK?
• Is there enough strategic oversight of the water sector? Is there a need for one body to operate as more of a guiding mind and if so should this role be taken on by the Government or any existing bodies, such as Ofwat?
• We have heard evidence that substantial investment will be needed in the water sector to meet future demand and improve environmental performance. Is it possible for the private sector to meet this investment need without significantly increasing customer bills, or is there a need for greater public funding in this area?

Launched in May 2022, the Committee’s Ofwat inquiry considers Ofwat’s performance against its statutory objectives and whether it has the powers and resources to needed to meet those objectives.

Click here to watch live