MPs accuse South East Water leaders of incompetence over repeated outages
MPs have declared no confidence in the leadership of South East Water, accusing CEO David Hinton and the board of incompetence and unaccountability following repeated water outages affecting tens of thousands of customers. The environment, food and rural affairs committee found the company failed to invest in infrastructure, maintain assets, or manage risks, leading to prolonged disruptions in areas like Tunbridge Wells. The company faces a £22 million fine from regulator Ofwat, which has highlighted its poor performance over several years.
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Emergency water distribution stations had to be set up in the Tunbridge Wells area last year after a major outage. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenEmergency water distribution stations had to be set up in the Tunbridge Wells area last year after a major outage. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty ImagesWater industryMPs accuse South East Water leaders of incompetence over repeated outagesParliamentary committee takes unusual step of declaring no confidence in executives at utility providerSandra Laville Environment correspondentThu 30 Apr 2026 19.01 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleMPs have accused the leadership of South East Water of incompetence over repeated water outages for tens of thousands of customers, and expressed no confidence in their ability to reform the…
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