South East Water chair quits after damning report by MPs
The chair of South East Water has resigned with immediate effect after a damning report by MPs into supply issues facing the utilities business.
Non-executive chair Chris Train has departed after tens of thousands of residents in Kent faced disruption to water supplies in November and December.
In a South East Water said: “Board discussions have taken place in recent weeks regarding the Company’s recovery and transformation plan.
“As part of this, the board and Chris considered the leadership of South East Water and mutually agreed that new independent board leadership is now required to oversee a
critical period of positive, transformative change for the company, its customers, and local communities.
“The board and executive team reiterate their unreserved apology to those customers impacted by recent operational failures, and the resulting loss of public trust in the company and its services.”
South East Water said it had initiated an “external, independent search process” for a new permanent chair, with Lisa Clement, currently independent non-executive director and chair of the audit and risk committee, appointed interim chair until the search is completed.
Clement said: “The company’s focus remains on delivering engineering and operational changes that will strengthen the resilience of SEW’s network and transform the company for the benefit of customers and local communities.”
House of Commons deals blow to South East Water board
In a highly unusual move, the House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee declared it had “no confidence” in the chief executive or the board of South East Water over its handling over recent supply disruption issues.
In a new report the cross-party Committee said it found SEW’s leadership’s “incompetence” has accompanied a “culture of unaccountability” that has perpetuated the company’s poor performance. Its “wholly inadequate governance framework” has also failed to hold its senior employees to account, the committee said.
The committee has called on shareholders in SEW – Utilities Trust of Australia, Natwest Pension Fund and Desjardins Group – to hold the company to account.
Committee Chair Alistair Carmichael said: “One cannot overstate the dangers of so many communities losing water supply for extended periods, including schools, GP surgeries and care homes. The Committee heard that many South East Water customers have so little confidence in the security of their supply that they are stockpiling bottled water because they fear the inevitable will happen again. In twenty-first century Britain that is an almost incredible state of affairs.
“Someone in this company needs to take a grip, be accountable for its failings and to put them right. That should be for the executive leadership of the company and, failing that, it should then be the non-executive directors. That would normally be the end of the road, but when that fails, shareholders have a duty to act.
“We urge them to read this report and to take action. They can no longer be allowed to ignore the consequences for the consumers that they are licensed to serve.”