Who should pay to clean up the UK's rivers?

It will be interesting to see what OFWAT makes of the business plans of the UK's water companies this week, and, as a result, the extent to which they are able to pass the costs of infrastructure investment onto consumers. The sector is currently under close scrutiny as a result of high levels of leakage and continued instances of marine pollution.

Please read: As under-fire water firms present their price proposals, who’ll be cleaning up? Alex Lawson

Here we go again, with water companies wanting OFWAT to allow them to increase water bills by up to £156 per annum to fund an ambitious amount of infrastructure investment.

These companies really are tone deaf: at a time when there's widespread criticism of sewage leaks and marine pollution, they want the customer to fund investment. Let me see - what's the collective level of dividend payments in the sector over the last decade? Maybe some of that should have been spent on investment?

Please read: Water firms want bill rises to cut leaks and spills (BBC)