The Water Services Legislation Bill establishes new water service entities and sets out their powers, funding, and governance. It also enables the transfer of local government water assets, liabilities, and revenue streams to these entities.
The Taxpayers’ Union opposes the Bill and has called for it to be withdrawn, citing concerns over uncompensated asset transfers and new charging powers. We also raised issues with governance by unelected bodies and inconsistencies with standard economic regulation.
The Bill risks weakening local government finances and removing democratic accountability over essential services. It also introduces potentially unfair charges and inefficient incentives, raising serious concerns about fairness and value for money for ratepayers.
