- Ofwat
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Water Services Regulation Authority (Welsh: Yr Awdurdod Rheoleiddio Gwasanaethau Dŵr) 
Non-ministerial government department overview Formed April 1, 2006 Preceding Non-ministerial government department Office of Water Services Jurisdiction United Kingdom Headquarters Centre City Tower, 7 Hill Street, Birmingham, B5 4UA Employees 226 Annual budget £17.2 million (2009-2010) [1] Non-ministerial government department executive Regina Finn, Chief Executive Website ofwat.gov.uk The Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) is the body responsible for economic regulation of the privatised water and sewerage industry in England and Wales.
Ofwat is primarily responsible for setting limits on the prices charged for water and sewerage services, taking into account proposed capital investment schemes (such as building new wastewater treatment works) and expected operational efficiency gains. The most recent review was carried out in 2009; reviews are carried out every five years, and thus the next will take place in 2014.
Ofwat consists of a board, plus an office of staff which carries out work delegated to them by the board. The current board consists of:
- Philip Fletcher - Chairman
- Regina Finn - Chief Executive
- Penny Boys - Non-Executive Director
- Peter Bucks - Non-Executive Director
- Jane May - Non-Executive Director
- Michael Brooker (WSRA) - Non-Executive Director
- Gillian Owen (WSRA) - Non-Executive Director
- Keith Mason (WSRA) - Executive Director
- Cathryn Ross - Executive Director
The Environment Agency is responsible for environmental regulation, and the Drinking Water Inspectorate for regulating drinking water quality.
The water industry regulator in Scotland is the Water Industry Commission for Scotland.
Contents
History
Ofwat was set up in 1989 at the time when the 10 Water Authorities in England and Wales were privatised by flotation on the stock market. The resulting companies are known as "the water and sewerage companies"; this distinguishes them from around a dozen smaller companies which only provide water services, which were already in private hands in 1989 (having remained in private ownership since their creation in the nineteenth century). The water only companies provide water to around 25% of the population in England and Wales.
Before 1 April 2006, all regulatory powers rested with the Director General of Water Services. The staff who supported the role of the Director General were collectively known as the "Office of Water Services", which was abbreviated to "Ofwat". Ian Byatt was the Director General between 1989 and 2000; Philip Fletcher, the current chairman, was Director General until 2006.
On 1 April 2006, the Director General was replaced by the Water Services Regulation Authority. The name "Office of Water Services" is no longer used, as it had no legal basis.
Price Reviews
Every five years, OFWAT set limits on the prices which UK water companies can charge to their customers; this process is known as a Price Review. There have been four Price Reviews so far - in 1994 (PR94), 1999 (PR99), 2004 (PR04) and 2009 (PR09). The most recent, PR09, sets price limits for 2010-2015. There were four phases of PR09:
- Preparation (March 2007 to March 2008)
- Setting the scene (April 2008 to January 2009)
- Decisions and determinations (February 2009 to November 2009) - the final determinations were published in November 2009
- Implementation and evaluation (December 2009 to September 2010) - by 26 January 2010, water companies decided whether to accept OFWAT's proposals or refer them to the Competition Commission. Only Bristol Water rejected Ofwat's price determination and referred the decision to the commission.
See also
- List of United Kingdom water companies
- Water supply and sanitation in England and Wales
References
- ^ Ofwat Resource Accounts 2009-2010, Water Services Regulation Authority, 2010-07-08, http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/aboutofwat/reports/resourceaccounts/rpt_rac_2009-10.pdf, retrieved 2010-12-19
External links
Coordinates: 52°28′35″N 1°53′55″W / 52.4763°N 1.8986°W
Water and sewerage companies
in England:Water only companies
in England:Albion Water · Bristol Water · Cambridge Water · Cholderton and District Water Company · Essex and Suffolk Water · Hartlepool Water · Portsmouth Water · Sembcorp Bournemouth Water (formerly Bournemouth and West Hampshire Water) · South East Water · South Staffordshire Water · Sutton and East Surrey Water · Veolia Water Central (formerly Three Valleys Water) · Veolia Water East (formerly Tendring Hundred Water Services) · Veolia Water Southeast (formerly Folkestone & Dover Water Services)Scotland Scottish Water (government)Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Water (government)Wales Crown dependencies Regulators Consumer Council for Water · Drinking Water Inspectorate · Environment Agency · Water Services Regulation Authority (OFWAT)Categories:- Non-ministerial departments of the United Kingdom Government
- Water supply and sanitation in England and Wales
- Water in Wales
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