Tim Doherty
There are 32 regulated companies supplying a mix of services for water and sewage supplies in England and Wales – 19 regionals, five locals and eight licencees who deal with the bigger users. These are all regulated by Ofwat, which is a non-ministerial government department established in 1989 when these services were privatised. The regulator aims to look after the consumer by ensuring good standards of customer service and acceptable pricing. In Scotland, you will deal with Scottish Water, which is a publicly-owned business.