Fury will boil over if water bonuses don't dry up soon

AS WE are forced to scavenge for extra cash next year to pay for the rise in water bills the average rise in England and Wales will be £86 from April - spare a thought for the hard-pressed bosses of water companies across England and Wales who have continued to enjoy six-figure financial bonuses.

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It is simply outrageous at a time when any positive perception of their businesses has long disappeared down the plughole. Industry regulator Ofwat has announced that bills will go up by 36% over the next five years. They say that this steep hike is to reduce sewage discharges and to pay for supply infrastructure upgrades.

The increases are higher than the regulator proposed earlier this year, but lower than the figures requested by water firms.

Yet this comes as we learn that the majority of water bosses have been enjoying chunky financial bonuses. I bet they won't be worrying about paying their future bills.

If you thought that was hard to swallow, the announcement of the price hike came at a time when 60,000 people were without any water in Hampshire because of a "technical fault".

To add insult to injury, Southern Water has increased their bills by the largest amount of any supplier in England and Wales. I wonder how that went down with their customers, as they queued this week for bottled water at a nearby water station in Southampton and the New Forest. Despite some homes being reconnected, Southern Water are warning that the disruption may well continue into the weekend.