Paul Davies

Paul Davies

Labour — Colne Valley

Speaking in the House of Commons on 14 September 2026

Debate

Water Sector: Public Ownership

Contribution

I will make some progress, and then I will. The current model is absolutely an economic failure. Private companies have paid out, in 2024 prices, around £83 billion—an average of £2.4 billion a year—as dividends, while loading the companies in debt. Often, those loans were taken out simply to increase the amount of cash extracted as dividends when profits alone were not enough. As we know, crucial infrastructure has been left to fail. Not a single new reservoir has been built since 1992, and water companies have overseen the waste of around 3 billion litres of water a day through leaky pipes.

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