Water Privatization and Regulation in England and Wales
In 1989, the United Kingdom embarked on one of the first modern privatizations in the water sector, selling assets under license and setting up an independent economic regulator. An important regulatory innovation is its use of price caps and yards...
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| Format: | Viewpoint |
| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2012
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/1997/05/441652/water-privatization-regulation-england-wales http://hdl.handle.net/10986/11585 |
| Summary: | In 1989, the United Kingdom embarked on
one of the first modern privatizations in the water sector,
selling assets under license and setting up an independent
economic regulator. An important regulatory innovation is
its use of price caps and yardstick competition. The author
highlights two lessons from U.K. regulatory experience:
effective price cap regulation has heavy information
requirements, and the necessary data and analytical tools
take time to assemble. And such built-in checks and balances
as financial autonomy for the regulator and status as an
independent government department are not always enough to
prevent political interference. |
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