'Did they deserve a bonus?': Eddie Mair grills Thames Water's Cathryn Ross

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  • Опубліковано 17 сер 2022
  • This is the moment Eddie Mair grilled Thames Water's Director of Strategy and External Affairs Cathryn Ross. This video clip has been taken from Eddie Mair's LBC show on August 17th 2022.
    #eddiemair #thameswater #LBC
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КОМЕНТАРІ • 861

  • @andyallen1129
    @andyallen1129 Рік тому +441

    Admits that her company is not delivering what the public and the customers expect , yet defends the performance bonuses dished out . Frightening

    • @RavenGhostwisperer
      @RavenGhostwisperer Рік тому +6

      Not really. Alternative would be to lose her job. You cannot expect truthful answers in a hostage-like situation.

    • @Kit-yv7ob
      @Kit-yv7ob Рік тому +34

      @@RavenGhostwisperer How silly of us to expect some integrity...

    • @andyallen1129
      @andyallen1129 Рік тому +32

      @@Kit-yv7ob exactly tell lies in order to keep her job and her profits and bonuses . And then people defending her for it . Pathetic

    • @andyallen1129
      @andyallen1129 Рік тому +20

      @@RavenGhostwisperer hostage like situation . What being pulled up on facts ??? Hostage like poor analogy

    • @Izrek
      @Izrek Рік тому +6

      @@RavenGhostwisperer Hostage situation in a way of holding gun in ones own head.

  • @suzannenichol6077
    @suzannenichol6077 Рік тому +440

    We must bring back all utilities into public ownership. Never should have lost them to Thatcherite greed.

    • @jasonstation
      @jasonstation Рік тому +1

      NHS is next for privatisation. And soon. Profit before infrastructure. Deep joy.

    • @manners2002
      @manners2002 Рік тому +15

      tory greed but close enough

    • @mikegoalby5991
      @mikegoalby5991 Рік тому

      Public greed. Thatcher instigated it the public bought the shares, then quickly sold them. Just like council houses

    • @audreymcgready4329
      @audreymcgready4329 Рік тому +12

      @@manners2002 And the greed from them continues.

    • @Izrek
      @Izrek Рік тому +5

      @@manners2002 Wasnt Thacher Tory?

  • @mikebell1980
    @mikebell1980 Рік тому +202

    I’ve never understood why company executives on salaries of hundreds of thousands and often millions of pounds need bonuses to encourage them to do the job they’re paid for.

    • @coppershark1973
      @coppershark1973 Рік тому +29

      They shouldn’t be getting that pay in the first place. They’re not gifted or godlike. They just take godlike wages.

    • @MrWhodini22
      @MrWhodini22 Рік тому +19

      @@coppershark1973 The experts say that if we don't pay them like that they'll take their 'talents' to another company that will pay them like that. That so many companies have the board, made up of executives, set executives pay and therefore it's in the boards own interest to keep them high seems to escape them.
      If a true left wing party a) existed and b) was electable in this country (neither is currently true), then the first thing that should be done would be to limit boardroom wages and bonuses to a certain percentage of whatever the lowest paid staff member receives (say no more than 400% of your lowest paid worker). If you want to be really radical, include outsourced staff such as cleaners in that as well!

    • @robertallardice8119
      @robertallardice8119 Рік тому +7

      Getting away with the con as usual!

    • @dommccabe17
      @dommccabe17 Рік тому +5

      Its just another in a line of massive grifts for the privileged few in Britain.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      what they need is a pistol pressed against the back of their skull.

  • @zerobeat2020
    @zerobeat2020 Рік тому +278

    High time all these organisations are re-nationalised. It is absurd that these important infrastructure providers are frittering away their profits to bonusses and shares, disgusting even. And Thames Water can definitely go faster fixing the problems if they didn't spend millions subsidising the richest people in the UK.

    • @mikeoglen6848
      @mikeoglen6848 Рік тому +9

      Why do we, The People, tolerate this state of affairs?

    • @machidaman
      @machidaman Рік тому

      @SingringComics because he was a euro-sceptic and alienated too many centersists. There.

    • @Demun1649
      @Demun1649 Рік тому +3

      @@mikeoglen6848 Because we are not French and don't have the backbone to stand up against a government.

    • @grahamhodge8313
      @grahamhodge8313 Рік тому

      @SingringComics I suspect there were many reasons but I don't think that his desire to renationalize utilities was among them.

    • @moneytalksbyhjgwhite
      @moneytalksbyhjgwhite Рік тому +2

      These are not private conpanies, they a government enforced monopolies. True private companies have to compete, these guys don't, we are legally not allowed choice. They shouldn't be allowed to own regions of the UK

  • @darrylsimpson4744
    @darrylsimpson4744 Рік тому +150

    In the seventies my mate Steve asked me if I was going to buy shares in the water companies as Maggie was privatising. I didn’t. He did. I was against privatisation. The taboo around nationalised services was that they were inefficient. But if my memory serves me well the water rate was a tiny portion of what was then “rates” (now Council Tax). Everywhere you look where the utilities were “privatised” costs have gone up and service and maintenance down. Electricity, gas, water, trains. All making millions. They scammed us under Thatcher. They scammed us with Brexit. Never ever trust the Tories or the Tory press who demonised the nationalised industries.

    • @RodZamora_is_the_best
      @RodZamora_is_the_best Рік тому

      Thats because Tory government kept telling the lie that "more competition equals lower prices". If you have more people at an auction, the prices actually go up not down.

    • @kevinwallace9168
      @kevinwallace9168 Рік тому +7

      The standard answer to those criticisms is that privatising these services will increase standards and gives more choice and competition leading to better service and better value for consumers.
      I’m still waiting for someone to give me an example of when that has actually ever happened. It appears that it just benefits shareholders and those lucky enough to get these huge bonuses (for providing worse services at a higher cost). None of the people involved have the interests of the people in mind when they’re doing this.

    • @lloydnaylor6113
      @lloydnaylor6113 Рік тому

      Darryl, privatisation of the former nationalised industries has not been ideal but they were failing industries. You want a electric cooker, go to the state owned electricity board, need a gas cooker,go to state owned British gas, no choice on price or indeed models like now. Can you imagine if mobile phones were around then, pick your mobile phone from the state owned British Telecom and come back in a year and perhaps it'll be ready for you just as it was for landlines. Perhaps a state/ worker ownership of the said industries might work.

    • @lloydnaylor6113
      @lloydnaylor6113 Рік тому

      P.s Daryll stop whining about Brexit, you lost get over it.

    • @robertmartin3383
      @robertmartin3383 Рік тому

      Yes Daryl, you only need to look at Scotland where Water services are run by a publicly owned company. The difference in performance is like night and day.

  • @cmeonthemove
    @cmeonthemove Рік тому +136

    No public utilities should be run privately - these excessive bonuses are the exact reason privatisation of public utilities is a national scandal. People are literally dying due to excessive bills, whilst these bosses are ripping us off.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      that's not gonna change a thing. you'd still get the same university graduates running the show and you'd still have to pay the same through taxes. the problem is excessive money printing going to investors who don't care about performance. free money for the big boys is the problem not free market economics.

    • @RockyScorcese
      @RockyScorcese Рік тому

      England is one of the only country in the world with privatised water! Not even the Americans have privatised water.

    • @robwalker3417
      @robwalker3417 Рік тому

      @@megaxenu753 But it is via the free market ideology that these bosses are able to pay themselves massive wages regardless of how well they are doing. Remember, the privatisation of water and indeed many other privatised critical infrastructures are not a traditional 'free market'. Those with the contract have pretty much guaranteed profits subsidised by the tax payer and have zero direct competition. Nationalise every critical infrastructure. Look at Scottish Water and the wages to success ratio. If anyone looks at these figures and still believes that the big Privatisation con is value for money are either dumb or one of the fat cats draining money out of the British system.

  • @jamesnicholson3658
    @jamesnicholson3658 Рік тому +88

    As a customer of a water company, this is appalling, I would suggest she and her cronies at the top of the pyramid face a series of sanctions, just like a job centre. Do the work or lose the money

  • @phillipmorrison9607
    @phillipmorrison9607 Рік тому +67

    Reduced by 10% in 3 years?? If I told my boss it took me 3 years to do anything by 10% I’d be fired. But then I don’t work in a monopoly where failure is tolerated and not punished…

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      At the low level at which you work I'm sure thats true. I'm not being rude just factual.

    • @phillipmorrison9607
      @phillipmorrison9607 Рік тому +3

      @@jjefferyworboys8138 😂 bless you thinking you have any idea about c level comp, let alone trying to justify it in a monopoly market

  • @hwica2753
    @hwica2753 Рік тому +32

    I grew up in Oxford in the 50's and 60's and water was just like air, always available and free. Obviously, we did pay for it, but it was buried in the rates. Privatization has been a disaster and it's time that it was returned to the public.

  • @badbones777
    @badbones777 Рік тому +137

    As a care worker if I wasn't meeting the standards necessary I'd be at least fired, possibly face criminal proceedings if I was negligent or wilfully endangered those I was caring for. I don't see why being in charge of water which effects millions should see you get millions in bonuses on top of a very generous salary.

    • @MrWhodini22
      @MrWhodini22 Рік тому +4

      Because, they're not failing to meet standards, in some areas they're even exceeding them. Which is part of the problem, we have laws that fully allow them to flush untreated sewage into the public waterways (admittedly when certain conditions are met), and they have targets to reduce leaks, but who sets the targets, and who is monitoring the targets to ensure they're not too easy to achieve?

    • @jnorth9431
      @jnorth9431 Рік тому +6

      Unfortunately you haven’t donated millions of money to the Tories, I suggest next time you do that donation and I am sure you will be better and happier for it

    • @harold4506
      @harold4506 Рік тому +1

      Then you should be in jail.

    • @badbones777
      @badbones777 Рік тому +1

      @@harold4506 Erm.......What?

    • @dismalfist
      @dismalfist Рік тому +1

      @@harold4506 ...Pardon?

  • @coppershark1973
    @coppershark1973 Рік тому +24

    The water bosses should be heading for prison NOT bonuses. They are wrecking our waterways and getting rich. The water should be in public ownership again. Now!

  • @drjazz7278
    @drjazz7278 Рік тому +40

    basically there is no risk to being a highly paid director of a private monopoly..... guaranteed massive salary, guaranteed massive pay off if they get fired

    • @koolerking440
      @koolerking440 Рік тому +1

      Don't forget the huge golden welcome handshake as well.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому +1

      i don't think it's so much about it being "private". you'd still get the same oxford uni graduates running it if it was publicly owned. we need a culture of promoting people from the bottom up not the top down.

    • @murraymicha
      @murraymicha Рік тому

      ..." if they get fired" or nationalised."

  • @kenwalker5384
    @kenwalker5384 Рік тому +20

    If the water bosses' bonuses were truly performance based, then they should be paying money BACK to the system!

  • @simonbrown5081
    @simonbrown5081 Рік тому +52

    Greed is spiralling out of control everywhere ....the age of decline and collapse is well underway

  • @Misclaneous
    @Misclaneous Рік тому +103

    The companies are not investing in infrastructure. This saves money and increases profit. So the board decides that the execs deserve large bonus.
    Perverse incentives at their very best.

    • @Noffkro
      @Noffkro Рік тому +1

      This is baseless and not true. Surprised how many likes this got

    • @filipealves6602
      @filipealves6602 Рік тому

      @@Noffkro we literally heard the woman say that it will take until 2030 for 80% (not 99%!!!) of the leakage to be sorted out, that's 8 years x 24 million Pounds in bonuses (assuming they won't be increasing with inflation, which they totally will be) that won't be going into infrastructure to reduce the 2030 goal (which is obviously not set in stone, and might suffer delays anyway and will be excused as an "oopsie" by this woman or whoever replaces her in 2030).
      So don't act so surprised, reducing the flow of profits into infrastructure expenses is the modus operandi of privatised utility companies. If they can "kick the can down the road", CEOs and the board of Directors certainly will, because the existing fines and legal framework are too weak to act as a serious deterrent, and are just considered as a cost of doing business. 🙄

    • @Noffkro
      @Noffkro Рік тому +1

      @@filipealves6602 I replied to "The companies are not investing in infrastructure" - this is blatantly not true as water companies invest billions of pounds into capital delivery projects. For example, Thames Water are expected to spend £11.7bn between 2020-25 on infrastructure projects. It is completely normal to give bonuses as incentives for high performing, high stress positions within the company. It is a drop in the ocean compared to the scale and magnitude of works that go on. Reading the comments it is incredibly obvious that none of these people have any experience on capital projects.

    • @filipealves6602
      @filipealves6602 Рік тому +5

      @@Noffkro and you have no experience in legal or even moral accountability.

    • @Wordavee1
      @Wordavee1 Рік тому +1

      @@Noffkro
      High stress positions?? The only stress is deciding the amount of money to spend on the infrastructure to get away with as little criticism as possible!!

  • @whatwelearned
    @whatwelearned Рік тому +55

    What you have to understand is that these people live in a different reality. She possibly genuinely thinks that what we all consider average or even terrible performance should reap such bonuses, in the same way that the Tories genuinely think they have an entitlement to power. This is a deep-rooted cultural problem.

    • @pansepot1490
      @pansepot1490 Рік тому +6

      The problem is not THEM thinking they are entitled, it’s voters thinking that these people are right in feeling entitled.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      it's not about tories and labour. they all go to the same posh universities. you'd still get the same clowns running it if it was publicly owned. i'd bet all the money in the world that women is a socialist hyper-liberal unicorn anyway.

    • @PaulStargasm
      @PaulStargasm Рік тому

      I don't think she personally does think this, although she may have colleagues that do.

    • @radicaltuesday6347
      @radicaltuesday6347 Рік тому

      *the* deep rooted cultural problem.

  • @roaringscot
    @roaringscot Рік тому +136

    A snapshot of exactly what is going wrong with privatised utilities in the UK right now.

    • @egnbigdave
      @egnbigdave Рік тому +3

      And education in Academies.

    • @normanno8514
      @normanno8514 Рік тому

      - with privatised utilities

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      It's no different in any other private company. The market determines the price of everything, even people. Why should a footballer get paid £10m, simple its the going rate for someone with specific talents.

    • @normanno8514
      @normanno8514 Рік тому

      @@jjefferyworboys8138 as noam chomsky said - free markets are absolutely fine apart from the fact that they dont exist

    • @TalesOfWar
      @TalesOfWar Рік тому

      @@jjefferyworboys8138 It's VERY different. A footballer isn't an essential service. Them not being able to play any more isn't going to potentially cause you to die like not having access to water or a means to heat your home in the winter. A free market only works when it's properly regulated. Most places in Europe have wage caps on footballers and other sportspeople. Even the US has wage caps in the NFL. Many other parts of Europe also have nationalised utilities because they're essential to the operation of the nation. They're a literal national security issue. Our utilities are owned by the government. Just not ours. The French, Germans, Italians and Spanish own a huge part of our utilities and transport sectors. They're leaching the money from us and leaving us with a lesser service in the process. This isn't the fault of the French, Germans, Italians or Spanish either. It's OUR fault, it's OUR governments fault for LETTING them.

  • @nobunaga240
    @nobunaga240 Рік тому +85

    Essentially what she’s saying is that management get their bonuses if profits and dividends are high. Conserving water and stopping sewage release decreases profits so they don’t do it

    • @koolerking440
      @koolerking440 Рік тому +1

      Exactly.

    • @temphold1
      @temphold1 Рік тому +2

      They wouldn't employ you in PR or let you be the spokesperson...too honest and speak clearly.

    • @cupguin
      @cupguin Рік тому +4

      She says she doesn't believe they can do faster, except if they spend millions on bonuses. Why not spend those millions on doing a better job? Because they have to spend that money on bonuses in their world rather than better tech or more staff or just mitigating the harm and damage they cause.

    • @lauralishes1
      @lauralishes1 Рік тому

      England is the only country in the world to sell off their own water. If you look at privatisation per country, ours is like a fire sale compared to any other country. The Tories have ruined this country.

    • @koolerking440
      @koolerking440 Рік тому +6

      @@cupguin Plus the water companies have been privitiased for 30 years, so how long does it take to fix the victorian pipes??! The answer is its been 30 years of taking the profits and giving it to bosses and shareholders.

  • @VISOVNI
    @VISOVNI Рік тому +36

    "Sewage leaks are wrong" *standing applause* "Give that woman a bonus."

  • @iainprendergast8311
    @iainprendergast8311 Рік тому +30

    This lady needs to be fast tracked into current British politics.

  • @Toothache42
    @Toothache42 Рік тому +48

    Can we just put a tax on all executive bonuses, and use that to support welfare, basic and much needed wealth redistribution?

    • @apkk5594
      @apkk5594 Рік тому +6

      Assuming the bonus is a cash bonus then it is subject to income tax. Having said that, it's typically the case that the bonus's are made in a 'tax efficient' way. This could be shares or some other method of reducing the tax burden.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      it won't work. the banks will just dish out more free money when you take it off them. corporate socialism is the problem. the big banks get free money and we get to pick up the tab.

    • @Toothache42
      @Toothache42 Рік тому +3

      @@megaxenu753 True, my idea wasn't well thought out, some loopholes need closing

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      @@Toothache42 we're all just trying to figure it out. but for me fundamentally what matters most is taking people capable people from the bottom and promoting them to the top instead of recruiting uni graduates.

  • @lokischildren7862
    @lokischildren7862 Рік тому +40

    No they don't deserve any pay rise or bonus.shes the chief bs artist

    • @apkk5594
      @apkk5594 Рік тому +6

      You're right. It's pretty clear from the interview that whilst they might be meeting the artificial targets they set to achieve a bonus, they are clearly not succeeding in resolving the problems that exist. Water was privatised over 30 years ago. Just how much time do they need to sort things out!

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      You seem to be under the illusion that business has a code of morality, it doesn't.
      They have a contract of employment that details precisely how their remuneration is calculated. Does a footballer deserve £10m a year ?

  • @davidhooper1767
    @davidhooper1767 Рік тому +54

    Getting rich on a necessity like water.Are they going to do the same with oxygen? It's disgusting that they also get bonuses on top of a huge salary but can't stop the leaks.I think prison is where they should go both for their greed and for the pollution of rivers.

    • @rockcatsofmiami4180
      @rockcatsofmiami4180 Рік тому +6

      If they could charge for oxygen they would

    • @davidhooper1767
      @davidhooper1767 Рік тому +1

      @@rockcatsofmiami4180 Like the garage near my parents house charged for air to pump up tyres when I was a kid.

    • @mikeoglen6848
      @mikeoglen6848 Рік тому

      @@davidhooper1767 Last time I needed air for my tyres, I had to pay.

    • @davidhooper1767
      @davidhooper1767 Рік тому

      @@mikeoglen6848 This was for my bike too.Had a Raleigh Arena racer.

    • @curtisalex456
      @curtisalex456 Рік тому +1

      In the US, a lady went to the emergency room. She signed in and waited to see a doctor. After a 7 hour wait, she decided to go home. She did not see a doctor.
      Two weeks later, She received a bill for nearly $700. When she inquired why she was charged $700 as she did not see a doctor, she was told it is because she used their "facilities".
      She waited patiently and was charged for "using their oxygen"(aka breathing).

  • @britishrose9417
    @britishrose9417 Рік тому +20

    At some point those pipes are going to leak?!?! Please never put this woman in charge of petrol stations!

    • @robertgoulty395
      @robertgoulty395 Рік тому +3

      ....or indeed in charge of the urology department at the local hospital...

  • @3rodox
    @3rodox Рік тому +16

    I've been waiting so many years for these discussions to become mainstream, it's great to see them happening.

  • @rdh-daliasjb3796
    @rdh-daliasjb3796 Рік тому +13

    Back when Thatcher was privatising utilities she was asked why the bosses were earning so much. She said to get the best you have to pay higher salaries. They were the same people that had been happy to earn 5 times less when the utilities were nationalised!
    Imagine what it's going to be like when the NHS falls totally into private hands, plus the insurance companies wanting thier profits, how much we are going to pay!

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      you'd still get the same oxford graduates running the show. it wouldn't make any difference. you need to promote people from the bottom up instead of recruiting from the oxford student body.

    • @rdh-daliasjb3796
      @rdh-daliasjb3796 Рік тому

      @@megaxenu753 I was commenting on the salaries these same bosses accepted before privatisation of the utilities, not the person employed.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      @@rdh-daliasjb3796 yea i'm not trying to have an argument. i'm just saying it doesn't really matter about the salary or who pays it. what really matters is promoting people up from the bottom of the company. it's much more important than whether something is private or public. you can still have an elitist public organisation.

  • @cearnunderhill1687
    @cearnunderhill1687 Рік тому +12

    How are they intending to stop leaks?
    As someone who liaises with Thames Water and others, I know that rather than repairing minor leaks, they reduce overall system pressures, less pressure less leaks....
    This is why in London for example there is such poor pressure for showers etc.
    This however also has other serious effects.
    For example there are instances where fire sprinkler systems are derived and are reliant on the town main to provide the flow and pressure for these systems, as the overall town main pressure drops these systems may no longer have the pressure required for the system to proved sufficient protection.
    I think this is a vital part of the conversation which is often missed.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      In London with the density of population it must be a nightmare. Shame they can't just flatten a large area and start again.

  • @stephenoneill5829
    @stephenoneill5829 Рік тому +11

    Shocking. Met the targets that they set,so the bonus will ALWAYS be met

  • @lastventure8377
    @lastventure8377 Рік тому +20

    And you just know that water bills will go up for us all.

  • @nickryder9669
    @nickryder9669 Рік тому +14

    In the last 30 years of private ownership they should have replaced every M M of pipeline in the country

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      Perhaps if you could flatten most towns and cities it would be so much easier.

  • @barbara1904
    @barbara1904 Рік тому +16

    The Tories are the one’s who let Thames water run the way it does.

    • @lloydnaylor6113
      @lloydnaylor6113 Рік тому

      No , it's a private company, they can't tell private companies how to run their business.

    • @barbara1904
      @barbara1904 Рік тому

      @@lloydnaylor6113 So what are you saying, government don’t make policy or law or taxes or regulation or fines that affect private companies?
      Private companies are like dogs, give them a long leash and they’ll run riot.
      And for a Tory govt. it’s usually their chums who are running these private companies.

    • @lloydnaylor6113
      @lloydnaylor6113 Рік тому

      @@barbara1904 give them a long leash and they'll make billions profit so they'll pay more taxes , for better public services. Where on earth do you think tax money comes from?

    • @TalesOfWar
      @TalesOfWar Рік тому +1

      @@lloydnaylor6113 Yes. They can. That's literally what regulation means.

  • @SavvyMoneyShow
    @SavvyMoneyShow Рік тому +20

    I want sewage spills reduced by 100%

    • @MrPianoJames
      @MrPianoJames Рік тому +7

      Exactly. Put a £10million tax on every sewage spill. I bet it won't take 8 years to reduce them by 80% then.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому +1

      Open wide !

  • @KrisRogos
    @KrisRogos Рік тому +21

    Okay, lets think it through, to stop the leaks you need to improve the infrastructure. To improve the infrastructure you need to buy material, buy or upgrade equipment and hire or contract staff to carry out the work. It is a distributed problem, as you could have different crews working 1 mile apart all along the line without them getting in each other's way. So it is precisely the kind of problem that the more money you invest into it, the quicker you solve it. So with that in mind, how on earth can anyone justify the executive team getting bonuses when directing this money to resources on the ground would make much more difference?

    • @filipealves6602
      @filipealves6602 Рік тому +3

      Precisely. This 2030 goal is laughable, those bonuses need to be curbed immediately after dumping sewage into the rivers. The whole thing is a charade.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому +2

      what you say makes sense. i think the problem is we have a top-down culture not a bottom-up culture. we need to promote more people from the bottom-up who have experience of hands on work, cutting, drilling, transporting materials etc.

    • @Sleck06
      @Sleck06 Рік тому

      The less they spend on investment and maintenance the more profit they make. The more profit, the more bonuses and dividends they can pay out. These private companies are incentivised to let the water system decline. Its a natural monopoly. Total scam water being privatised in the first place

  • @khoyrulislam
    @khoyrulislam Рік тому +14

    I need this guy to be the voice of all my audiobooks

  • @IBTU
    @IBTU Рік тому +16

    Easy answer NO

  • @sneakyfish8191
    @sneakyfish8191 Рік тому +8

    Time to renationalise water. Transport and Energy next. Protect the NHS. Keep corporate money out of our public services. DON'T VOTE TORY.

    • @lloydnaylor6113
      @lloydnaylor6113 Рік тому

      I agree re nationalise water but I'll still vote Tory in 2024/5.

  • @craigevans6156
    @craigevans6156 Рік тому +4

    Thank goodness Scotland still has a public water service

  • @dannyjones8712
    @dannyjones8712 Рік тому +16

    Tories broken Britain

  • @richardfearn6638
    @richardfearn6638 Рік тому +13

    I’m going to miss Eddie when he leaves LBC

    • @ShopFloorMonkey
      @ShopFloorMonkey Рік тому

      Is he leaving? That would be a real shame. At that point I think I might just block all LBC content, because Eddie is the sole voice of reasoned compassion there!

  • @lucasmoreno5330
    @lucasmoreno5330 Рік тому +4

    What performance is she referring too. They have been dumping raw sewage into the out rivers.

  • @susim4503
    @susim4503 Рік тому +8

    Well, no bonuses for them until they do. What about bonuses for those actually doing the work?

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      If its in their contract of employment then of course !

    • @susim4503
      @susim4503 Рік тому

      @@jjefferyworboys8138 How did they get the bonus intp their contracts? Why doesn't every employee have it written into their contract? You are ignoring the massive power imbalance that now exists between employers and workers when negotiating contracts.

  • @NotThatOneThisOne
    @NotThatOneThisOne Рік тому +12

    Their 'customers' don't care about them fixing things that shouldn't break so often. Not destroying the environment is something that's expected, not wanted. They do care about their bills.

    • @TalesOfWar
      @TalesOfWar Рік тому

      Their customers are their shareholders, not those using the "services" they (somewhat) provide.

  • @orraman5427
    @orraman5427 Рік тому +11

    Despite strike action in the rail sector the gravy train in the privatised water industry has not been affected.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      because the guys striking want socialism even though all the uni grads earning big bucks in the top positions are socialists. they don't understand socialism is about an intellectual elite running things instead of the free market. hot lead is the only way to solve this problem.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      The rail strike hasn't affected me either.

  • @charlie.charles
    @charlie.charles Рік тому +7

    I can't understand how water companies are clearly caught out by a short period of summer weather. It's a joke and they're laughing all the way to the bank of our money.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      because all this women does is lie. that's her job. that's why they get paid so much money. to pull the wool over your eyes, p*ss in your pocket and tell you it's raining, or not as the case maybe. free money from the big banks. the left and the right should be on the same page really. less free money going from banks to big shot investors.

  • @ianmoore3891
    @ianmoore3891 Рік тому +4

    Why can't the bonuses be added to wages and take on extra staff to repair damaged pipes, stop sewage spills etc.

  • @bernardthedisappointedowl6938
    @bernardthedisappointedowl6938 Рік тому +8

    imagine if people's bills weren't paying bonuses and dividends and regulation prevented water companies from borrowing vast amounts of debt and then paying themselves dividends out of it - again at the customers expense - crazy to think, once upon a time, bills paid for water and services in the dim and distant past before privatisation, ^oo^

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      i agree with what you say about debt but public ownership won't make any difference. it'll still be just as badly run if its private or public. what they need to do is promote working people up the ranks instead of recruiting from the oxford student body.

  • @pedrothewise2584
    @pedrothewise2584 Рік тому +10

    Nationalise it.

  • @petercolledge2236
    @petercolledge2236 Рік тому +6

    "Maybe you need a better target." Just total Eddie.

    • @billydeeuk
      @billydeeuk Рік тому

      Targets are set by Ofwat, not by the individual water companies. If your problem is that you think the targets are too low, you need to speak to the regulator, not the water companies

  • @gordonstrong5232
    @gordonstrong5232 Рік тому +6

    Essential services like healthcare, energy and water supply should always be nationalised.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      it wouldn't make a lick of difference bro. you'd still have the same oxford graduate clowns running the show. they need to promote people from the bottom up instead of recruiting from the oxford student body.

    • @skyjetisdabest
      @skyjetisdabest Рік тому

      ​@@megaxenu753 The problem of dumping sewage into rivers for profit would disappear for a start, because the concept of neccessary profit wouldn't even exist in a public company

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      @@skyjetisdabest I'm not trying to say there aren't other motives than profit here but what do you think would motivate these same university graduates if it was public owned? national pride? it would be exactly the same. you'd have the same university graduates in charge and they'd still get better treatment than the rest of us. it's not so much about profit as it is about being higher up the ladder than everyone else.

    • @skyjetisdabest
      @skyjetisdabest Рік тому

      @@megaxenu753 Because if its publicly owned they still get their fat pay rises without dumping sewage into rivers. Because their pay would no longer be linked to profit.

  • @Human_Herbivore
    @Human_Herbivore Рік тому +6

    Profit over essential services is the mantra of these organisations. If they are doing everything they can, clearly its time to renationalise.

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      really its more about environmentalism and diversity than profit atm i think

    • @Human_Herbivore
      @Human_Herbivore Рік тому

      @@megaxenu753 you'll have to explain that. How is their paying these bonuses while having these leaks environmental?

    • @megaxenu753
      @megaxenu753 Рік тому

      @@Human_Herbivore well you heard her jump onto the environmental shtick even though the interviewer was talking about leaks. they all want to blame climate change. the environmental stuff really is at the top of the agenda. look at germany, they could easily build nuclear power plants and make lots of money but instead their economy is in massive trouble. it really is all about environmentalism much more than profit atm. about carbon footprints and what not.

    • @Human_Herbivore
      @Human_Herbivore Рік тому

      @@megaxenu753 meanwhile the UK economy, highest inflation and lowest growth in the G7.
      Essential services should not have a profit incentive.

  • @happyapple4269
    @happyapple4269 Рік тому +2

    'We will set our own targets and reward ourselves on meeting own set targets'.

  • @Sneddz1
    @Sneddz1 Рік тому +5

    This is brilliant.

  • @keith4518
    @keith4518 Рік тому +5

    Instead of paying bonuses, use the money to employ more people to do the leaks

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      Contracts of employment tend to be very specific as to remuneration packages.

  • @VolkerHett
    @VolkerHett Рік тому +3

    Here in Bremen, Germany the local TV station recently interviewed a former professor from the local university about all the dead fish in the river Oder in Poland at the moment and took a detour to pollution in the Weser in Bremen.
    It turned out, that the professor founded the professorship for aquatic ecology here in the early 80s. Back then the sewage treatment plan for Bremen had two stages and the Weser was in a dire strait. The plant then was extended to a four stage sewage treatment process. In the early 2010s they completed an extra process to filter medicines. One reason for this is antibiotics in sewage water kills the bacteria needed for sewage treatment 😊
    25.1% of the local water supplier is in public -i.E. the city of Bremen, ownership.

    • @jnorth9431
      @jnorth9431 Рік тому

      Did you manage finding out what has killed all those fish than

  • @terencespragg5708
    @terencespragg5708 Рік тому +5

    He should of asked by what % has leaks been improved and with bonuses and pay rises was that more than the improvement then ask why they got paid more if that was the outcome.

  • @josephmcgivern9671
    @josephmcgivern9671 Рік тому +4

    AS long as you look after boss your going no where they should be in jail

  • @Greenpoloboy3
    @Greenpoloboy3 Рік тому +2

    Corruption really is everywhere now. Where there is money, there is corruption

  • @jameses4413
    @jameses4413 Рік тому +3

    Notice she didn’t answer the question!! The pay they get is obscene considering this is a monopoly!! They get their bonus based on how much money they make, in a monopoly where the public need water to survive!! Privatising our water for the greedy self serving so called executives is obscene!!

  • @BenjaminGlatt
    @BenjaminGlatt Рік тому +3

    You can see her soul die a little every time Eddie asks a question.

  • @chrismalcomson7640
    @chrismalcomson7640 Рік тому +1

    Water got privatised about 35 years ago, you'd think after all that time these issues would have been dealt with? I live in Southern Spain where they use the old Moorish water systems developed 500 years ago and even though I live in the only desert in europe, I don't have a hosepipe ban..

  • @chad0x
    @chad0x Рік тому +7

    What did they do to earn those bonuses?

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      Thats why they have contacts of employment, it determines their remuneration package.

  • @Gryphon_19
    @Gryphon_19 Рік тому +3

    The world needs more interviews like this guy.

  • @barryscroggins8450
    @barryscroggins8450 Рік тому +2

    Allow me to paraphrase "Thames Water is doing everything it can be arsed to do, and congratulates itself on that fact daily."

  • @chiip90
    @chiip90 Рік тому +2

    "We are 2 years into an eight year overhaul" - who was in charge when it was allowed to get this bad? A few questions should be asked of them.

  • @ThatGuyThanus
    @ThatGuyThanus Рік тому +3

    No, I clearly remember being assured that privatising the water companies was going to replace all the crumbling infrastructure and reduce leaks, and make water cheaper..

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      I clearly remember my ex wife assuring me that she loved me, I was wrong, it was just my money she loved.

    • @TalesOfWar
      @TalesOfWar Рік тому

      Turns out the Tories lied to us. Also water is wet, the sky is blue and days end in Y (in English at least).

  • @saturdayplayer2492
    @saturdayplayer2492 Рік тому +3

    Should be nationalised along with all utility firms. They should provide a service which they are not doing.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      Nationalisation is hugely expensive, particularly at a time the country is entering a period of recession.

    • @saturdayplayer2492
      @saturdayplayer2492 Рік тому

      @@jjefferyworboys8138 I agree but the country must be proactive and look at the long term benefits.

  • @davidhenrywall8619
    @davidhenrywall8619 Рік тому +5

    Gotta get some of these companies nationalised the greedy companies are out of control customer, s are getting ripped off year in year out enough is enough help the needy not the greedy.

  • @WORLD8NSH5KNIGHT1
    @WORLD8NSH5KNIGHT1 Рік тому +2

    The big energy companies also need put on the spot about their greed
    This sort of questioning is why an independent media is so important in a democracy

  • @getheroutofthetruck
    @getheroutofthetruck Рік тому +1

    England and Wales became the only countries in the world to have a fully privatised water and sewage disposal system.

  • @mcmkone
    @mcmkone Рік тому +6

    😂😂😂, at this point all I can do is laugh because it’s soo ridiculous that they try to justify failings by rewarding C level management.

  • @philcotswold5940
    @philcotswold5940 Рік тому +2

    Sadly Eddie Mair has retired. For me one of the best journalist in my life time. Softly spoken assassin.

  • @lucasmoreno5330
    @lucasmoreno5330 Рік тому +2

    Seasonal Hosepipe bans have been around to years. Finally people have had enough and she says they recognise things need to improve. Why did they not see this before?

  • @roberttewnion1690
    @roberttewnion1690 Рік тому +3

    Maybe use some of those executive bonuses to pay for more repairs....🤔

  • @drhibas
    @drhibas Рік тому +1

    If more British journalists were like those at LBC I think the UK would be a lot better place.

  • @OurSeaBee
    @OurSeaBee Рік тому +3

    A bonus for meeting targets? Isn't that what a salary is for? A bonus is for exceeding them.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      A bonus is for meeting your target, although it may be increased to reflect the amount of over achievement.
      I had a job which paid a salary and a bonus, it's not uncommon.

  • @tbone7822
    @tbone7822 Рік тому +3

    She sounds like a politician…

  • @charlestownsend9280
    @charlestownsend9280 Рік тому +2

    I'm sure the money from the bonus could have been invested into more staff and resources, so they could be doing better. I also fail to see why someone should get a bonus for a job they haven't finished.

  • @Alex-cw3rz
    @Alex-cw3rz Рік тому +1

    Great video

  • @Soniceduardo1820
    @Soniceduardo1820 11 місяців тому +1

    Eddie Mair was years ahead of the game....bring him back

  • @petyrkowalski9887
    @petyrkowalski9887 Рік тому +3

    All water utilities run a monopoly. I cannot understand why they need such highly paid executives…they need competent engineers and managers. They have zero competition. All our utilities were stolen by the tories and sold off to the private sector and all the money paid out to executives and shareholders should have gone into the service improvement.

  • @mikesmith-rp1mb
    @mikesmith-rp1mb Рік тому

    I love Eddie's smooth, calm, passive aggressive style. Brilliant.!

  • @sheilaroddick5853
    @sheilaroddick5853 Рік тому +3

    Banana Republic Britain.

  • @cpuuk
    @cpuuk Рік тому +2

    All the ex Public Utilities do this- you should see the bonus's British Gas (Centrica) is handing out to it's management for doing a great job of putting prices up.

  • @majuli8420
    @majuli8420 Рік тому

    Corporate speak corporate speak platitude platitude corporate speak. Thank you very much. Very enlightening.

  • @nickryder9669
    @nickryder9669 Рік тому +2

    Fixing obviously isn’t the problem overall ! The problem is they are NOT REPLACING COMPLETE PIPELINES ,!

  • @tomredaintdead9575
    @tomredaintdead9575 Рік тому +1

    How about reducing the price of water? It has gone up 40% since privatisation!

  • @sandysimpson4785
    @sandysimpson4785 Рік тому +2

    I'm sad Eddie is going, his dry sarcasm is soooooo funny, especially with the d£@d-pan look on his face 🤣🤣🤣🤣

  • @mdkram
    @mdkram Рік тому

    Eddie is such a great interviewer!

  • @grahams1609
    @grahams1609 Рік тому +3

    there’s no way people should be making big profits from water.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      Why not , it's a business just like any other ? Profit isn't a bad word.

    • @grahams1609
      @grahams1609 Рік тому

      @@jjefferyworboys8138 It’s water! Isn’t it obvious? Geez

  • @chaddamp2894
    @chaddamp2894 Рік тому +1

    The Utilities have turned into a type of "Quango" in the sense that we (the customer)can't do anything about them .The board and directors always look after themselves first.What should the customers do to alter this???

  • @graemeglass7566
    @graemeglass7566 Рік тому

    Scottish Water was re-nationalised in 2002. The CEO salary is £200,000. Cathryn Ross is on £2 million. But her package is £3.1 million. Just shocking!!! We have lost the plot in the UK . How on earth do they think they are worth this money or anything near it.

  • @-Deena.
    @-Deena. Рік тому

    Eddie Mair. Awesome as ever 🧡

  • @lesleyw6976
    @lesleyw6976 Рік тому +2

    Only 50% reduction in sewage discharges by 2038????!!!! Water life will be dead long before then, not to mention anyone attempting to swim! They could make faster progress if they hired more people and decreased the bonuses/incentives for bosses!!!

  • @Skylark_Jones
    @Skylark_Jones Рік тому

    MORE from Eddie Mair please.

  • @markcarruthers9902
    @markcarruthers9902 Рік тому +1

    It’s like when after the bank bailouts happened and the bosses still got millions of pounds in bonuses and wages and we were told “ you have to pay top dollar or the best will go elsewhere”.

    • @jjefferyworboys8138
      @jjefferyworboys8138 Рік тому

      Very few banks were bailed out, HSBC the UK's largest bank weren't and the CEO spoke out against it.

  • @alexhatfield9950
    @alexhatfield9950 Рік тому +1

    Fine the executives by taking their bonuses.

  • @MrPiccolop
    @MrPiccolop Рік тому +1

    Are we ever going to get to the point of guillotines? Getting sick of hearing about all this and people not doing anything about it. They are not scared at all. They need to be made scared. In fact terrified.

  • @ekatep6362
    @ekatep6362 Рік тому

    I love Eddie Mairs calm, soothing voice holding people to account. They can't get annoyed without looking like aholes

  • @cliffdeford
    @cliffdeford Рік тому

    "(Cathryn Ross) joins Thames Water from BT, where she was responsible for the company’s global regulatory activities. Prior to BT, Cathryn was the CEO of water regulator Ofwat, where she was responsible for ensuring the sector delivered against the expectations of customers, wider society and the environment." I think that says it all really...

  • @vis7139
    @vis7139 Рік тому +1

    so 10% in 3 years, and then another 10% across 8 years (and remember some of those 8 years are included in the previous 3 years)
    So yeah, sounds like you're really moving in the right direction...