Thames Water “withdrew” the plans to pay bonuses of senior patterns linked to the company guaranteeing an emergency loan of 3 billion pounds Sterling, said the secretary of the environment.
Steve Reed confirmed that the proposals had been abandoned during a session of the Environmental Committee, Foods and Rural Affairs (EFRA) with deputies on Tuesday.
The so -called detention plan would have represented 50% of the salaries of senior bosses – which led them to obtain 1 million sterling pounds in addition to their annual wages and their regular bonuses.
Payments were linked to The company in difficulty securing A rescue loan Up to 3 billion pounds sterling to avoid collapse earlier this year.
The president of the company had admitted earlier in the day having wrongly indicated that the detention plan had been “insisted” by lenders.
Thames Water had “tried to get around” the upcoming rules that can prohibit water companies from paying bonuses by “calling their bonuses something different,” Reed told deputies.
“It was not the right thing to do,” he said. “It offends the feeling of fair play from their own customers.”
A spokesperson for the Thames said: “He has never been the intention of Thames Water Board to contradict the government’s ambition to reform the water industry.”
The company’s board of directors “decided to suspend the retention regime and wait for the regulator’s future forecasts” in relation to the new rules, he added.
In a letter to the committee, the president of Thames Water, Sir Adrian Montague, said that he may have “in the fire of the moment (…) poorly explained” when he was questioned about the reversal of the company during a session of the EFRA last week.
The president of Thames Water, Sir Adrian Montague, addressing the committee last Tuesday. Pic: House of municipalities / British Parliament
Thames Water is the largest water company in England, providing around 16 million households across London and the Southeast.
It was at the center of the growing public indignation on the extent of pollution and Growing bills – which increased The leaders received huge bonuses.
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The new rules of the Water Services Regulation (OFWAT) mean that bonus bonus payments can be prohibited if companies do not meet standards to protect the environment, consumers and business finances.
It could also block payments funded not only by customer money, but also by lenders and shareholders.