Thames Water should suffer the consequences of its poor performance

SIR – Thames Water (Comment, April 1) has been rebuked by Michael Gove, the Levelling Up Secretary, for asking to increase water bills by 40 per cent.

Yet it has already increased my water bill by 75 per cent since February, regardless of the fact that the countryside is now saturated (there is never any real shortage of water in this area) and even though there has been no reduction in the discharge of sewage into rivers.

It needs to be allowed to go bust.

CM Chadwick

Lechlade, Gloucestershire

SIR – Nick Timothy (Comment, April 1) is right to draw attention to the part played by Macquarie in the current financial distress of Thames Water. The mountain of debt on its balance sheet and the sewage in some of our rivers are its legacy.

But readers may not be aware that Macquarie has now turned its attention to acquiring large tracts of agricultural farmland for the purpose of “solar parks”. A recently announced project in North Wiltshire is not far from large industrial developments that have no solar panels on them. Green energy is important, but another unwelcome legacy from Macquarie can be avoided if the Government reviews its guidelines on the location of solar panels.

Andrew Sells

Chairman, Natural England, 2014-2019 Sopworth, Wiltshire

SIR – The efforts to reduce water usage seem very feeble compared to those encouraging us to use less energy, whereas the gains would be immense.

The smart meter programme has been a very expensive failure; water meters would have been a far better option, and brought an immediate drop in consumption. Do we really need all this obsessive showering and clothes washing? I never shower, wash daily with a basin of water and have the occasional bath. I still have friends.

Saving water is more effective than threatening water bosses with fines or jail sentences.

Timothy Schofield

Chester

SIR – According to my water meter, in three days in January I used the equivalent of two months’ consumption, with usage returning to normal levels thereafter. There is no sign of a leak and I don’t have a swimming pool. I have raised this with Thames Water, which says it is investigating, but that hasn’t stopped it sending me a bill including the very questionable consumption figures.

Harry Mann

Teddington, Middlesex

SIR – Regardless of the industry they operate in, regulators such as Ofwat are either too incompetent or lack the required skills to do their job. They simply ignore customers and pander to the needs of companies.

Mike Metcalfe

Butleigh, Somerset