05 January 2001
Unison, Scotland's largest public service union, has launched an attack on the Scottish Executive's plans to introduce competition to the water industry.
Environment Minister Sam Galbraith, still smarting from criticism over last summer's exam result debacle, announced in December that private water companies are to be allowed to bid for business, to comply with European rules on relaxing monopolies.
Currently three publicly owned water authorities serve nearly 5 million Scottish customers and have a combined turnover in excess of £600m.
The union fears de facto privatisation will result in a poorer service as more profitable business customers will be 'cherry-picked' by new entrants into the market, leaving poorer domestic customers at a disadvantage.
Under the proposals, private companies will be able to offer water services by employing the existing infrastructure, as do gas companies.
Dave Watson, Unison's Scottish organiser for utilities, condemned what he described as 'the gradual privatisation of the industry through the Private Finance Initiative'.
Watson said the Scottish Executive's consultation paper, Managing change in the water industry, promised: 'Nothing but a public shell wrapped round private functions. The opening up of facilities for private English water firms means that private firms are increasingly carrying out the functions of Scotland's water boards. The introduction of unbridled competition in the water industry will add to this pressure and eventually the public shell will burst.'
Galbraith insisted that strict legislation would be introduced to regulate the actions of the private water suppliers. He stressed to the Scottish Parliament's transport and environment committee that privatisation of the industry as a whole was not on the agenda.
PFjan2001
