The bankruptcy of Thames water represents a pattern in infrastructure failures that are increasing and will continue to increase for the foreseeable future. The question is when, and perhaps if, elected officials and citizens begin to demand and implement different approaches to solving society's problems. Important notes on Thames water to keep in mind:
They Bankrupted themselves - they were not bankrupted by the government it was a clear strategy to extract maximum value for a few at the expense of the many.
The two buyout options - which are in fact bankruptcy proceedings - that private investors offer no plan to actually deliver water and deal with sewage, rebuild the infrastructure and guarantee water service and affordability. Rather, the plans, and I’m not making this up, involve paying the very people who have bankrupted Thames water 750 million pounds in fees, no more government fines for not meeting safety or ecology standards, and an aggressive schedule of raising rates. In other words, it is a financial transaction not a water delivery program.
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