White paper calls for major sector changes

摘要

A Massive shake-up of the water sector, with more new entrants and consolidation is likely if proposals in the Government's white paper, Water for Life, published last month are implemented. The Government expects to publish a new draft Water Bill, available for pre-legislative scrutiny in early 2012, based on the white paper, with Defra aiming to "introduce a Water Bill as soon as Parliamentary time allows". Defra wants to encourage "interconnection in our water supply system so that we can use our resources more flexibly and efficiently". The Environment Agency is tasked with looking for interconnection options across all licensed water supplies.