10 watchdog staff quit for senior jobs at water firms in three years

10 former key watchdog staff quit for senior jobs at water firms within three years, leading to claims a ‘conflict of interest’ has left regulator unable to manage its debts

• Critics say a ‘revolving door’ between Ofwat and large water firms is to blame 
• More than 50 senior leaders have switched between Ofwat and private sector  

Ten former key managers and experts at water watchdog Ofwat have joined water firms in the past three years – leading to claims a ‘conflict of interest’ has left the regulator unable to get a grip on debts, leaks and sewage spills.

Critics last night said a ‘revolving door’ between Ofwat and large water firms was to blame for a ‘light touch’ approach.

An investigation by The Mail on Sunday can reveal more than 50 influential managers, consultants and directors have switched roles between Ofwat and the private sector in the last two decades. Many remain key players in the water industry. Six of England’s nine water firms have recruited Ofwat officials into senior roles.

They include former Ofwat head Cathryn Ross, who recently became interim chief executive of Thames Water, which faces debts of £14 billion. In recent years, it spent borrowed cash on bumper payouts for shareholders and staff bonuses.

Thames Water, which was fined £3.3 million for sewage spills in Sussex and Surrey last week, also hired three senior Ofwat employees, including former director Jonathan Read, to work in its regulatory strategy and policy department in the past 18 months. Yorkshire Water hired two ex-Ofwat officials, a senior economist and non-executive director last year.

Thames Water, which was fined £3.3 million for sewage spills in Sussex and Surrey last week , also hired three senior Ofwat employees, including former director Jonathan Read, to work in its regulatory strategy and policy department in the past 18 months

READ MORE: Water firms are planning new price rises for customers, Ofwat chief warns as he says Thames Water customers won’t have to cover cost if firm collapses

Thames Water (tanker pictured at Mogden sewage treatment works in London) customers will not have to cover the cost if the debt-ridden water company collapses

South West Water recruited a former Ofwat director of strategy last year, and Northumbrian Water has hired two senior Ofwat regulatory experts since 2020.

Severn Trent hired 11 senior Ofwat workers, while nine moved in the opposite direction. Southern Water hired an ex-Ofwat pricing expert to head its corporate strategy, while two managers joined Ofwat.

Last night campaigners called for urgent reform. Louise Reddy, of Surfers Against Sewage, said: ‘Decades of hollow regulation from Ofwat have allowed water companies to pollute as they please.

‘Having turned a blind eye to water company profiteering, we’re not surprised that the waters between Ofwat and water companies have been muddied.’ Richard Murphy, professor of accounting practice at the University of Sheffield, called for a change ‘so that we can stop pretending Ofwat is independent’. He said: ‘Ofwat suffers from a conflict of interest that afflicts all public sector regulators.

‘People are not paid terribly well and know they can do better in the private sector they regulate. The perception is that they take a light touch on this or that private company because they think that same company might give them a job.’

Water firms are facing crises of a debt fiasco, raw sewage pumped into rivers on over 301,000 occasions last year, and three billion litres of water lost in leaks daily.

An Ofwat spokesman said its staff are bound by Civil Service rules on independence, propriety, and probity as part of a code of conduct, adding: ‘They are reminded of this, both when first appointed and when leaving the organisation.’

A spokesman for WaterUK, a body that represents the country’s water and sewerage suppliers, declined to comment.

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