Could do better
IAN BYATT, who regulates them, thinks that they are learning to behave like busi- nesses, even if some of them have learning difficulties. They are spending more money to stop their pipes leaking: 'This may have resulted from pressure from customers. If so, good.' He wants to see those pressures increased by making the companies pay compensation, automatically, if the taps run dry. He has even done the sums about watering the lawn. Supplying water for a sprinkler can cost 75p an hour or more, but the marginal cost to most customers is zero. Then the companies wonder where the water goes and recommend the con- crete garden. It does not seem to cross their corporate minds that if people prefer grass to concrete they might pay to water it, and that setting the right price is how to bring buyers and sellers together. They have much to learn.
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