High Court - it's happening.
- Ash
- Feb 1, 2025
- 3 min read
This Monday morning 3rd February at 10am, WASP and our constituency MP, Charlie Maynard will be in the High Court to raise the public interest and customer case, with legal representation, for the opening of a week-long sanctions hearing relating to Thames Water - here's why.
Just before Christmas WASP saw Thames Water applying for a £ 3 billion loan at over 9.5% interest plus high fees, to keep it out of Special Administration as it runs out of money.
You may find it hard to believe that a 'tightly regulated' company with a guaranteed income from captive customers that have to fund its operating costs, investments in infrastructure and payments to shareholders can run out of money, but that's what is happening.
Thames Water's proposed solution to the problems caused by its £19 billion (yes, nineteen thousand million) debt burden is to add even more debt which is already costing billpayers about 33p in the £ to pay for loans that expert research shows the company did not need. Shareholders' interests have been the priority, not improving and delivering the service.
Special Administration is a legal process specifically designed to protect the company, creditors, billpayers and the public when the wheel comes off what should be a solid water utility with a guaranteed income protecting national infrastructure and serving the public, not a money extraction machine for shareholders and executives.
This is what the well-known auditor PWC writes on its website about the Special Administration Regime (SAR)
Here is the full content.
However, we saw that Special Administration, which would consider what is right for the public, was being unconvincingly avoided by the government and that neither the public nor billpayer would be represented in the High Court hearings for an alternative resolution.
That felt so wrong that we wrote to the court to find out if we could contribute the missing evidence - what might be best for the public and customer?
In mid-December, we emailed our letter and handed in a hard copy with support from MP Charlie Maynard, hoping the court might agree we had a point.
We were delighted that our letter met with instructions on how to provide evidence but we were entering specialised territory unknown to our team so we were more than relieved when Charlie Maynard and WASP secured pro bono assistance to be represented by a legal team at the sanction hearing.
The counsel (barrister) team for Charlie and WASP is led by William Day of 3 Verulam Buildings, with Marriott Harrison acting as the instructing solicitors.
You may have seen our previous blog and responded to us as WASP made an unreasonably fast but well-received turnaround request to other NGOs, organisations, clubs, riparian owners, councillors and councils for support. Meanwhile, Charlie Maynard called on MPs from all parties to show unity. Thus we gathered a sample of the views of a broad range of voices, and the response has been remarkable.
The reply rate and comments of support, including from members of the public have been both heartwarming and encouraging and we thank you all.
There will be more blogs from us this week to keep you in the picture.
Campaigning group WeOwnIt, who supported us when we handed in the first letter is coordinating a public display of support outside the court.
Taking a step back and a deep breath -
This is the most important and potentially defining event that we have seen since we started investigating and campaigning in 2017.
Ending sewage pollution, discharging better quality effluent, better public health protection, safer bathing waters, healthier rivers, lakes and coastal waters, supporting genuinely sustainable economic growth and housing, providing better value for money, better resourcing and working conditions for embattled water company employees, taking out the motives to cheat and pollute for profit, making regulators' work achievable, directing all customers and developers money to the business, not to debt servicing and shareholders, protecting businesses relying on health waters, bringing excellence and modernisation instead of sweating the assets and a 'what will the customer tolerate' approach to the water industry, you may know of more - all of this will be affected by what happens this week.
We will keep you posted.
A really important issue with far-reaching consequences for customers, the environment, and the future of the water industry. It’s encouraging to see public and clicker games customer interests being represented in such a critical hearing. Hopefully, this hearing can help lead to meaningful and lasting improvements.
What I noticed while checking ok win game was that I was more interested in the practical details than anything promotional. I wanted to see how the different sections were arranged and whether the information was easy to follow. Taking a few minutes to explore things on my own helped me understand the platform better. I think that is usually more useful than relying on quick descriptions.
Wishing WASP and Charlie Maynard every success on Monday — the outcome really could reshape how water companies are held to account. We spent the weekend going back through our river photos from the Ampney Brook and found a free AI photo editor handy for tidying up the images we wanted to share alongside the coverage.
This Monday's High Court hearing really underscores how much is at stake for billpayers and the environment. In moments like these, it helps to step back and notice the small joys that keep a community going — which is exactly what the 1000 little things collection is for, a gentle reminder to appreciate the everyday moments worth remembering. Best of luck to WASP and Charlie Maynard.
Best of luck to WASP and Charlie Maynard on Monday — this is exactly the kind of public-interest case the High Court needs to hear. It also reminds me that solid evidence matters: if you ever need to work out where a photo of pollution was actually taken, a tool like where is this place can quickly pinpoint the location straight from the image.