MPs call for special administration of Thames Water

MPs gathered on the banks of the Thames on 13 July, calling for Thames Water to go into special administration.

They’re among the 112 MPs who have signed an open letter to the environment secretary and Ofwat. It calls for Thames Water to be placed into special administration without delay.

The company, which has a debt pile of nearly £20bn, is on the brink of collapse. Since June 2025, Thames Water’s creditors, a group of US hedge funds, have been negotiating with Ofwat to formally take over the utility.

As part of the proposed deal, the creditors want to waive fines until 2030. And they want to suspend or ‘significantly modify’ pollution and performance targets. The creditors also want to raise bills for households beyond the level currently set by Ofwat.

Thames Water deal is unfair

Last month, environment secretary Emma Reynolds wrote to Ofwat objecting to the current terms of the deal. She stated that it poses unfair costs to consumers. But the water regulator itself has yet to reject the deal.

This comes as the utility approaches the 16 July deadline for submitting its financial results. If the deal doesn’t happen, Thames Water’s precarious finances might trigger a ‘going concern’ warning from the auditor. This could place the utility in special administration.

Prime minister-in-waiting Andy Burnham has previously said that Thames Water ‘should’ be nationalised. And he has put forward a potential 10-year plan for public ownership of the water industry.

53 Liberal Democrats have signed the open letter, along with 46 Labour MPs, six independents (at the time of signing), all five Greens and one MP each from Plaid Cymru and the Conservative Party.

It argues that allowing Thames Water, which was responsible for a third of the worst pollution incidents in 2025, to set its own rules would create a dangerous precedent for all of England’s privatised water companies.

It also argues that special administration will allow the government to write off a greater proportion of Thames Water’s debts. And this would secure a better deal for the public purse.

Sophie Conquest, lead campaigner at We Own It, said:

Right now, this government and Ofwat are at a crossroads. They can choose to line the pockets of US hedge funds with our money. Or, they can put households and the environment first.

This is a decision which will affect every single household in England. Signing off on this deal would be to sign off on a whole new low in standards across the water sector.

That’s why 109 MPs, from across the country and from across political parties, have added their names to the open letter calling for special administration.

The environment secretary’s objection to the creditors’ proposal on the grounds of its unfairness for consumers is absolutely right.

The next logical step is to put Thames Water out of its misery, and place it in special administration, where we can slash the debts, and put households and the environment first.

Andy Burnham has promised to secure greater public control of life’s essentials. There is no clearer test of whether he will keep that promise than what happens next to Thames Water.

Featured image via We Own It