UK Water Bosses Say Plans to Block Dividends Over Sewage Spills Will Hit Investment
- Environment Secretary wants to go further on cash lock up
- Dividend ban seen raising cost of infrastructure upgrades
Discoloured liquid discharged into the River Thames in Dartford, UK.
Photographer: Carl Court/Getty Images
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UK proposals to block water company dividends over sewage spills risk preventing the infrastructure investment the nation urgently needs, industry bosses warned the government.
Environment Secretary Steve Barclay told executives at a meeting last month that significant sewage discharges may be punished with bans on dividends and bonuses. The bonus ban has since been confirmed. Company officials said a dividend block would deter investment or make it punitively expensive, according to two people familiar with their representations.