Letters: New Forest’s water systems are circling the drain

I broadly agree with Ms. Franklin (A&T Letters 22nd Aug) about the conduct of water companies. I have written twice on this topic recently quoting, inter alia, the essence of the problem; for decades we did not pay the economic price for water. Hence the dilapidated and inadequate infrastructure that privatisation’s smoke and mirrors was supposed to renew.

A royal commission could examine the matter and likely cost of the remedy and put it before Parliament. Part of the solution must be renationalisation; preferably without compensation which otherwise would be met by consumers already rinsed by Thatcher’s sale to us of what we then owned. Had the 10 times the privatisation valuation disbursed as executive bonuses been invested in infrastructure, renewals would be substantially completed by now.

We are where we were in 1988 but with more to fix. Farage, meanwhile, talks of appointing civil engineers. Already available, they know exactly what needs doing subject to £100 billion to pay civil engineering contractors to do it.

The increases in water rates this needs must be levied indefinitely if future dilapidations and inadequacies are to be obviated. Any advance meanwhile on 25%? Environment Secretary Steve Reed can blame Thatcher’s aversion to any service in public ownership. She was not around long enough to fulfil a similar ambition for the NHS and the BBC.

H Fletcher
Address supplied