Thames Water nearing the cliff edge.

[motorbiking]

Exactly. They have to tread carefully. Investors are watching, they need to find the right balance.

 

[Highway Man]

We were better off when all utilities and services were all Nationalised, it's how it should be, British Gas, British Rail, The Electricity Board, The Water Board. British Steel, We are paying well over the odds for a lesser service and to fund the lucky share holders and fat cat bosses to become richer with hideous salaries. These services should never have become privatised company's.

 

[morqthana]

Exactly. They have to tread carefully. Investors are watching, they need to find the right balance.

No investor who worries that he might lose his money if he engages in pillaging privatised infrastructure businesses is welcome.

 

[IT Minion]

Isn't the main reason Thames Water is at risk of being renationalised that the investors don't want to invest any funds?

 

[morqthana]

Why is a significant investment needed?

Given investors' rational analysis of the returns they have had so far,and where they came from, why should they balk at further investment?

It's a sound business, competently run by its executives, isn't it?

 

[Justin Passing]

Most of Thames Water Dividendees, if that's a word, are in Abu Dhabi, China, and Canada afair.
Many of the major Creditors, who would stand to lose money now ( the shareholders would have given up hope long ago) are US hedge funds,. I don't know the details.

Some privatisations of things which "shouldn't have been" turned out OK, depending on your point of view. I wouldn't support if meself.
BT, BG, BA, BP, and RR.

It's a sound business, competently run by its executives, isn't it?

Yes, But.
It's the debt which is the problem, it's drowning. The business itself, is getting better. Or less bad.

 

[morqthana]

Some privatisations of things which "shouldn't have been" turned out OK, depending on your point of view. I wouldn't support if meself.
BT, BG, BA, BP, and RR.

Yo have to think about whether they should have been nationalised in the first place. BT, probably, as it was then the monopoly provider of the country's comms infrastructure. BG, yes. BA & RR were rescued when they failed. BP was formed for strategic reasons.

But should airlines, oil companies, and engineering firms be state owned?

Yes, But.
It's the debt which is the problem, it's drowning. The business itself, is getting better. Or less bad.

The people running it did not wake up one morning to find the company saddled with debt, and not a clue how it got there..

 

[motorbiking]

Where there is competition there is no need for state ownership, where there isn’t it doesn’t make much sense for privatisation.

 

[fixitflav]

where there isn’t it doesn’t make much sense for privatisation.

Particularly when no control is retained over executives' pay, bonuses and dividends etc. It's gone just the way anybody could have predicted.

 

[morqthana]

Where there is competition there is no need for state ownership,

Domestic or foreign competition?

 

[motorbiking]

Domestic or foreign competition?

It depends.

But for the main if a consumer has no choice then privatisation makes no sense. If you want to improve the quality and service etc. then that could be achieved through outsourcing. This is how you can create competitiveness.