Ofwat

Water Services Regulation Authority Welsh: Awdurdod Rheoleiddio Gwasanaethau Dŵr
Non-ministerial government department overview
Formed	April 1, 2006 (2006-04-01)
Preceding Non-ministerial government department	Office of Water Services
Jurisdiction	England and Wales
Headquarters	Centre City Tower, 7 Hill Street, Birmingham, B5 4UA
Employees	226
Annual budget	£19.1 million (2011-2012) [1]
Non-ministerial government department executive	Cathryn Ross, Chief Executive
Website	www.ofwat.gov.uk

The Water Services Regulation Authority, or 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:

• Jonson Cox (WSRA) - Chairman
• Regina Finn (WSRA) - Chief Executive
• Penny Boys (WSRA) - Non-Executive Director
• Robin Paynter-Bryant (WSRA) - Non-Executive Director
• Wendy Barnes (WSRA) - Non-Executive Director
• Sonia Brown (WSRA) - Senior Director of Markets and Economics
• Keith Mason (WSRA) - Senior Director of Finance and Networks

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.

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, was Director General until 2006 and chairman until 2012. The current chairman is Jonson Cox. The current chief executive is Regina Finn, who in May 2013 announced her intention to resign in November 2013. She is due to be replaced by Cathryn Ross.

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. They are set on a so-called "K factor" which determines the average value of price rises above the current rate of inflation (RPI) for the next five years.^[2] The rises so far set are:^[3]

See also

• List of United Kingdom water companies
• Water supply and sanitation in England and Wales

References

External links

• Water Services Regulation Authority website

Coordinates: 52°28′35″N 1°53′55″W / 52.4763°N 1.8986°W / 52.4763; -1.8986

v t e Departments of Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom Ministerial Attorney General's Office Cabinet Office Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Department for Communities and Local Government Department for Culture, Media and Sport Department for Education Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Department for International Development Department for Transport Department for Work and Pensions Department of Energy and Climate Change Department of Health Foreign and Commonwealth Office Her Majesty's Treasury Home Office Ministry of Defence Ministry of Justice Northern Ireland Office Office of the Advocate General for Scotland Office of the Leader of the House of Commons Office of the Leader of the House of Lords Scotland Office UK Export Finance Wales Office Non-ministerial Charity Commission for England and Wales Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt Competition and Markets Authority Crown Prosecution Service Food Standards Agency Forestry Commission Government Actuary's Department Her Majesty's Land Registry Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs National Crime Agency Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills Office of Fair Trading Office of Gas and Electricity Markets Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation Office of Rail Regulation Ordnance Survey Public Works Loan Board Serious Fraud Office Supreme Court of the United Kingdom The National Archives Treasury Solicitor's Department UK Statistics Authority UK Trade & Investment Water Services Regulation Authority Category  Commons