The Guardian newspaper has published a detailed analysis of the water companies in England which is calling into question the fairness of England’s privatised water model and referring to England’s water as “the world’s piggy bank.”

The online and print publication has published a series of separate articles on the complex ownership structures which underpin the English water companies.

Pointing out that water systems in most countries are in the public sector, including in Scotland and Northern Ireland, an article entitled “England’s water: is the privatised model a fair system?” comments that it is “notable that no other country has copied this fully privatised model of water delivery.”

The Guardian comments:

“England water company debts have ballooned since privatisation, and at the same time companies have been paying generous dividends to shareholders. Arguably if these dividends had been reinvested in the water infrastructure, debt costs would be considerably lower.”

According to the Guardian’s analysis, at least a fifth of England's water is held by corporations based in seven countries in Asia, while almost a third of England's water is owned from North America. At least another 10% is controlled by companies based in the UK, with 18% unaccounted for, the analysis says. In total, it says more than 70% of English water industry is in foreign ownership spread across shareholders based in 17 countries, including:

• US: 17% - includes BlackRock which has stakes in several water companies.
• Canada: 15% - mainly via Canada Pension Plan and the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System - respectively the biggest owners of Anglian Water and Thames Water.
• Abu Dhabi: 4% - via subsidiary of sovereign wealth fund Adia
• Hong Kong: 6% - until July 2022 CK Infrastructure Holdings fully owned Northumbrian Water (6% of the market)
• Australia: 11% - at least 11% of English water companies owned by seven Australian companies, including the Macquarie Group

“It seems that businesses and households are paying into a system that is likely to be boosting the earnings of the world’s richest“

According to The Guardian, a full assessment of whether this is “a fair way to manage a water system” would need to be able to trace what funds are flowing where and for what purpose. However, it concludes that the current system is “far from transparent” and “the truth is that we don’t know where the dividend payments end up.”

It goes on to point out:

“From what we do know, it seems that businesses and households are paying into a system that is likely to be boosting the earnings of the world’s richest, simply through their consumption of water, while pension pots may also benefit.

“The way we provide our water could be contributing to growing inequality in the UK and beyond. It is worth noting that no other country has copied our model of water delivery.”

To read The Guardian articles in full:

Click here to read Can global water investors be held to account?

Click here to read England’s water: is privatised model a fair system?

Click here to read Revealed: more than 70% of English water industry is in foreign ownership

Click here to read England’s water firms respond to investigation into role of global investors