Readers' Letters: Water companies have been ‘holding everyone over a barrel’

Readers’ Letters is a free weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.

The following comments were left below an article about calls for Yorkshire Water to be brought under public ownership.

Privatisation has been disastrous and the various companies involved, with their complex structures seem to have been specifically designed purely for their own profits and to evade responsibility & accountability. They’ve been holding everyone over a barrel. And all helped by hopeless regulation - regulators who it turned out, had vested and conflicting interests. True, the old nationalised system didn’t work well - yet other countries have nationalised systems which do seem to work. Perhaps we could learn something?

Friedy Luther

Privatising a monopoly?… what did anyone realistically expect?

Ian Brown

The idea that the private sector always works best has caused so much damage.

Fred Hicks

Well maybe but memories are short and the industry was in a parlous state before it was privatised. Regional authorities overseen by local government was hardly the recipe for effective or efficient management.

Paul Reynolds

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