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CMA Provisionally Backs £556m Top-Up, Lifting Bills by About 3% for Five Water Firms

The provisional ruling now enters consultation.

Overview

  • An Independent Group appointed by the CMA allowed 21% of the £2.7bn sought by Anglian, Northumbrian, South East, Southern and Wessex Water, rejecting most new spending bids and tying extra funds to specific outputs with penalties for underperformance.
  • The decision implies an average additional 3% rise on top of Ofwat’s settlement for affected customers, after Ofwat’s PR24 had already set average increases of about 36% over 2025–30.
  • Illustrative outcomes show Anglian and Northumbrian up about 1% (to £599 and £495), Southern up 3% (to £638), South East up 4% (to £286) and Wessex up 5% (to £622) versus Ofwat’s figures.
  • Extra revenue is earmarked for supply resilience, pollution reduction and higher financing costs, with slightly higher investor returns than Ofwat allowed.
  • Consumer advocates warned over affordability pressures, and government and independent reviews have called for wider reform of water regulation.