Architect of government’s water plan says nationalisation might not fix everything and the current system can work
The privatisation of water in England is not the reason for its failings, the architect of the government’s water plan has said, as he warned there was no one “simple solution” such as nationalisation.
Sir Jon Cunliffe, a former Bank of England deputy governor who was involved in reforming banking regulation after the 2008 financial crisis, was enlisted by the Labour government to write a report on the water industry. He was tasked with addressing problems such as the sewage scandal, frequent tap water outages and lack of preparedness for drought.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
01/23/2026 - 08:00
01/23/2026 - 05:45
Canadian backpacker, 19, was found dead on K’gari island earlier this week surrounded by pack of wild dingoes
The autopsy of Piper James, whose body was found on K’gari surrounded by a pack of dingoes, has found “physical evidence consistent with drowning and injuries consistent with dingo bites”.
The Canadian backpacker’s trip to Australia ended in tragedy when the 19-year-old was found dead on a beach on Monday on the world heritage-listed island formerly known as Fraser Island off the Queensland coast.
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01/23/2026 - 03:00
This week’s best wildlife photographs from around the world
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01/23/2026 - 01:00
Experts say climate crisis, corruption and lack or misuse of infrastructure among factors driving water conflicts
Water-related violence has almost doubled since 2022 and little is being done to understand and address the trend and prevent new and escalating risks, experts have said.
There were 419 incidents of water-related violence recorded in 2024, up from 235 in 2022, according to the Pacific Institute, a US-based thinktank.
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01/23/2026 - 00:00
Conservationists hail the ‘desperately needed’ measures and urge greater protection after up to 11% of endangered Tapanuli orangutans wiped out
The floods and landslides that tore through Indonesia’s fragile Batang Toru ecosystem in November 2024 – killing up to 11% of the world’s Tapanuli orangutan population – prompted widespread scrutiny of the extractive companies operating in the area at the time of the ecological catastrophe.
For weeks, investigators searched for evidence that the companies may have damaged the Batang Toru and Garoga watersheds before the disaster, which washed torrents of mud and logs into villages, claiming the lives of more than 1,100 people.
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01/22/2026 - 19:01
More than 30,000 households left with defects after ‘catastrophic failure’ of Tory government schemes
Members of parliament have called for the Serious Fraud Office to investigate the UK’s home insulation sector, after thousands of householders suffered ruined homes, big financial losses and months of disruption from the “clear and catastrophic failure” of two Conservative government schemes.
More than 30,000 households were left with defects, some of them severe, including mould, water ingress and damage to the fabric of walls, with about 3,000 dwellings so badly damaged they presented immediate health and safety risks to occupants.
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01/22/2026 - 14:11
Campaigners hail U-turn during legal challenge over proposed centre an ‘embarrassing climbdown’
The government has been forced to admit its own planning approval for a major AI datacentre should be quashed after it failed to fully consider the climate impact, in what campaigners described as “an embarrassing climbdown”.
Angela Rayner, the former deputy prime minister, had overruled opposition from a local council to grant permission for a hyperscale datacentre on greenbelt land by the M25 in Buckinghamshire in line with Labour’s pledge to enable faster private investment in AI. But her successor, Steve Reed, has admitted the reasons for not requiring an environmental impact assessment were “inadequate” and that “permission should be quashed”.
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01/22/2026 - 12:33
Marineland seeks approval to sell belugas to United States after its China export proposal was rejected
‘It’s heartbreaking’: how 30 captive beluga whales have become pawns in row over animal cruelty
Marineland, the Canadian amusement park and aquarium which has threatened to kill its captive whales, wants government approval to sell the belugas to the United States after its China export proposal was rejected, according to an official and a former trainer.
The former tourist attraction near the famed Niagara Falls has been mired in controversy for years. Twenty animals, including 19 belugas, have died at the park since 2019, according to a tally by the Canadian Press.
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01/22/2026 - 12:00
Sheldon Whitehouse adds auto giant to investigation after US president claimed CEO requests changes to regulations
As the Trump administration prepares to overturn the rule underpinning virtually all US climate regulations, a Senate committee is investigating whether the US’s second-largest automaker lobbied for the rollback.
In September, the Senate environment and public works committee launched investigations into two dozen oil companies, thinktanks, law firms and trade associations, focused on how the companies may have persuaded the White House to initiate the repeal of the 2009 endangerment finding. Now, the committee, chaired by the Rhode Island senator Sheldon Whitehouse, is expanding the investigation to include Ford Motor Company.
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01/22/2026 - 08:56
Pollution from wood burners kills thousands but proposed emissions limit would cut toxic particles by 10%
New wood-burning stoves will carry a health warning highlighting the impact of the air pollution they produce, under UK government plans.
Ministers have also proposed cutting the limit on the smoke emitted from wood burners by 80%. However, the measure would only apply to new stoves, most of which already meet the stricter limit. The new limit would cut the annual toxic emissions from wood burning in the UK by only 10% over the next decade, according to the consultation.
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