Cuncliffe Report on the Water sector

Friends of the Dart response to Sir John Cunliffe’s Review of the Water Sector

Friends of the Dart welcome the systemic approach outlined in Sir John Cunliffe’s recent review of the UK water sector. This is a signal that the dominant patterns of delay, denial, and decay are being seen for what they are, and that a shift toward whole-system attentiveness is at last being named. 

We agree with the proposal to introduce the power to block ownership changes, issue directives to controllers, and enforce accountability at the executive level. This signals a shift toward governance rooted in responsibility, not just efficiency. A new regulatory body that is regionally focused is welcomed; however, there needs to be more action being taken to ensure that dividends, payments to shareholders and large salaries within water companies are redressed to ensure that finance is invested effectively and swiftly into infrastructure updates.

This report is long overdue. As Sir John points out, the system is not merely "broken" in a mechanical sense; it is not functional, made this way by years of prioritizing dividends and capital gains over the well-being of communities and ecosystems.

We echo his recognition that water company owners must not profit at the expense of life itself—of rivers, of wildlife, of human communities who live downstream from short-term decisions.

We’re also encouraged by:

• The proposed reforms to licensing and statutory governance codes for senior managers;
  
  

• A national strategy that includes regional roundtables, bringing together agriculture, local planning authorities, and others.
  
  

• The inclusion of public health as a key concern in water governance;
  
  

• The call for a water company ombudsman
  
  

Crucially, Sir John’s call for publicly accessible, real-time data could be a powerful turning point—if meaningful and accurate data is shared and not as a token of transparency. 

His emphasis on revisiting abstraction limits, sludge handling, and the inclusion of PFAs, microplastics, and micropollutants in treatment regulation shows a clear awareness of the complex, often invisible threads that are poisoning our waters. Assessment and updating of permits is crucial to halting the long term demise of our waterways.

This is not just about “managing” water - it is about tending to the metabolic health of the world’s circulatory systems.

Real transformation will depend on follow-through, and on resisting the gravitational pull of business-as-usual.

Let this report be the beginning of deeper, community-aligned governance. One that listens, not just reacts, and one that attends to relational repair, not only technical control and financial profiteering. Water companies have been marking their own homework for too long. We welcome accountability and whole system thinking in moving towards long term health. The government must now establish appropriate requirements and ensure that these are adhered to.

We stand with the Rivers, and with those who advocate for them.

Hannah Pearson 

Founding Director- Friends of the Dart

The full report can be read here.