i mean thames water has £80 billion _ industry? sure.? sure. i mean thames water has £80 billion of debt _ industry? sure. i mean thames water has £80 billion of debt that _ industry? sure. i mean thames water has £80 billion of debt that it - has £80 billion of debt that it needs to service and essentially it is saying it hasn't quite got enough to keep going the company. it has been hit by higher interest rates on that debt and all the money comes out of the customers' bills, so a greater share is going to paying off that debt orjust paying that debt. and so it has asked shareholders to put in equity and so far they're refusing on the grounds that ofwat is saying that they need to put more money in and they need to, they want ofwat to make some concessions. that includes a big increase in customer bills. they want a 56% increase in bills. they want a 56% increase in bill after inflation and concessions on regulatory fines, because... sounds like the burden then is, could be placed on customers. what sort of reaction has there been to t

since 1989 since water was privatised, thames water has built up privatised, thames water has built uphe backs of customers. thames water customers pay 25p in every pound to a service that debt. thames water is one of the worst water companies for sewage, it leaks away one fifth of our water, and in the meantime, shareholders have been taking out of the company £7 billion in dividends. and now they are say, they are turning to ofwat and they are we want to increase the bills by a0%, we want to allow shareholders to continue taking dividends and we want to be off the hook for sewage. it's an absolutely unsustainable absurd situation and it highlights everything that is wrong with water privatisation in england. and it's the reason why we actually need the government to bring tens water into public ownership permanently, not by other shareholders but in public ownership to work for people and households who use it and for the environment. the households who use it and for the environment. th— households who use it and for the environment. the people always point out with three — environm

thames water says it has enou:h with. thames water says it has enough money _ with.s it has enough money in _ with. thames water says it has enough money in the - with. thames water says it has enough money in the bank - with. thames water says it has enough money in the bank to i enough money in the bank to lasted for a little over a year, but at some point it will have to raise fresh money to fund the vast investments that are needed and those investors will want to see a return, which could inevitably mean higher bills. in north london, these blue pipes are replacing those laid when victoria was on the throne and these streets were fields. it will take tens of billions of pounds and thames is not alone, ultimately that money has to come from customers, many high bills, or from taxpayers. simonjack, bbc news. let's talk to the veteran investor justin urquhart stewart, who now runs the investment platform regionally. hello, always good to see you there. ,., ., hello, always good to see you there. h, ., ., hello, always good to see you there-_ as - hello, always good

the fact that these thames water shareholders — 1?t these thames water shareholders have _ 1? the fact that these thames water shareholders have refused _ 1? the fact that these thames water shareholders have refused to - 1? the fact that these thames water shareholders have refused to put - shareholders have refused to put this extra money into the company doesn't make nationalisation eventually inevitable —— thames water. but it does make it a lot more likely it would otherwise have been. if it does happen, it wouldn't been. if it does happen, it wouldn't be a willing nationalisation and no doubt ministers would try and get the company back into private hands as soon as possible. some would say that would be the wrong thing to do and there is plenty of nationalised industries and there is plenty of nationalised industries in other countries that show public utilities can be delivered by nationalised companies in an efficient way, especially things like natural monopolies perhaps, where people don't have the ability to move around an

thames water wants to put up the bills by 70%.sh water is in public ownership. there are problems of there, of course, but it is far away from the disaster uzi in england. if we triggered a special procedure, shareholders lose their investments, creditors who have been reckless in landing and taking money out of the water system can be made to take a haircut. fundamentally, we've got to rethink the public ownership looks like in the 21st—century britain. the top—down system of whitehall control over public services isn't really the best way. what you want to do is make sure that staff at the water companies who knew the service best, bill payers who have a real interest in making sure the service works have representation on the boards of directors who are running our public services. it is notjust water, it is also energy, real, the nhs, that the experimental privatisation just does not have a good track record and it is time to have a serious conversation about to change. have a serious conversation about to chance. ., ~ ,, have

thames water is one of the worst water companies for sewage., shareholders have been taking out of the company £7 billion in dividends. and now they are saying, they are turning to ofwat, they are saying, we want to increase customer bills by a0%, we want to allow shareholders to continue taking dividends, and we want to be off the hook for sewage. it's an absolutely unsustainable, absurd situation and it highlights everything that is wrong with water privatisation in england. and it's the reason why we actually need the government to bring thames water into public ownership permanently. not bail out the shareholders, but bring it into public ownership so it can work for people, for the households that use it and for the environment. the newly—formed presidential council in haiti has pledged to restore public and democratic order once it's installed. the council said it would appoint a new prime minister to organise long—overdue presidential and congressional elections. criminal gangs have continued their campaign of violence in the capital, po

one of the biggest water companies in the uk, thames water, has announced that its investors will nottomer bills rise. shareholders were due to inject half a billion pounds of funding — that's around 630,000 million dollars — needed by thames water, which has debts of around £18 billion. the bbc understands that the shareholders are insisting that the regulator, ofwat, agrees to a substantial increase in bills before they make the investment. here's chris weston, chief executive of thames water speaking to the bbc this morning. we are, as i said in conversations with ofwat regarding our business plan and that is important and that is a process that will go on until the end of this year. and that creates a business plan that shareholders and anyone who might provide equity can look at and determine whether they are going to inject equity into thames. so i think it is premature to go there at the moment. if, at the end of the day, probably well into the end of next year, we were in a situation that we had no equity, then there is the prospect as i think simonjack was saying of special a

for thames water.ners in the supply chain to provide our services for the benefit of customers, benefit of our customers, communities and the environment. and catherine, whilst we've got you did want to talk to you about rishi sunak, who has sparked somewhat of an easter honours row, hasn't he? announcing a knighthood for one of the tory party's biggest donors and for tory mps, the timing of this is very interesting, isn't it? >> yes, it is quite an unusual to have an honours list. now it's reignited speculation. we know there's not going to be a general election in may, but speculation that there might be one in june or possibly july , one in june or possibly july, even though the government is still saying the autumn is the plan. most likely dates, november the 14th or 21st. so let's see. but yes , a big row let's see. but yes, a big row because, alongside the awards to people like sunak, loyalist philip davis who becomes a sir, etc. yeah, there's been a knighthood for mohammed mansoor , knighthood f

thames water cleans up the mess. thames water cleans up the mess.r than average rainfall across london and ground water levels are exceptionally high for the time of year. the have published plans to upgrade over 250 of their sites. but it does notjust london that this affects. there are thousands maybe millions of people who consider entering public waterways for recreation. almost every day. certainly every weekend. this is a problem that is notjust affecting the capital. in the boat race course. that is bright. taste the capital. in the boat race course. that is bright. we are seeinr course. that is bright. we are seeing the — course. that is bright. we are seeing the decline, _ course. that is bright. we are seeing the decline, fast - course. that is bright. we are i seeing the decline, fast decline course. that is bright. we are - seeing the decline, fast decline of an unregulated industry. environment agency and all four do not have the tp civil subsidy environment agency has lost about seven is its funding so very much a national in many ways

one of the biggest water companies in the uk, thames water, has announced that its investors will not struggling utility giant extra cash unless customer bills rise. shareholders were due to inject half a billion pounds of funding — that's around $630,000 million dollars — needed by thames water, which has debts of around £18 billion. the bbc understands the shareholders are insisting that the regulator, 0fwat, agrees to a substantial increase in bills before they make the investment. chris weston, chief executive of thames water has been speaking to the bbc. we are, as i said in conversations with 0fwat regarding our business plan and that is important and that is a process that will go on until the end of this year. and that creates a business plan that shareholders and anyone who might provide equity can look at and determine whether they are going to inject equity into thames. so i think it is premature to go there at the moment. if, at the end of the day, probably well into the end of next year, we were in a situation that we had no equity, then there is the prospect as i think s

since privatisation of the water industry in 1989, we've had all water companies, not just thames wateraying much of that by loading themselves up with debt. so you mentioned the 15 billion figure for thames water alone. and so fundamentally the regulation in the water industry act 1991 says that the regulator should make sure that water companies and their investors can get a return on their capital. it's not primarily about making sure that there is good water, that the rivers are clean, that the beaches are clean. so, you know, at the heart of this is a failure of the experiment of privatisation. we even have a situation where currently on the board of thames water is a director who used to be the chief executive of 0fwat, the regulator. and so this is how broken and captured the regulation system is, when you can be a regulator but then get a lucrative job at a water company later on that you're meant to be regulating, you're probably not going to do a very good job. the government oversees all of this, and it can change it by putting water companies into special administration and

well, listen, in response to the thames water , response to the thames water, saga, i'd like to saga,assure customers that reassure our customers that despite this announcement, it is business usual for thames business as usual for thames water. our 8000 staff remain committed to working with our partners in the supply chain to provide our services for the benefit of our customers, communities and the environment. thank you again to john martin. this gb news is just coming this is gb news is just coming up to 20 minutes after 3:00. i'm dana akua. we're live on tv, onune dana akua. we're live on tv, online and on digital radio. coming up, we'll be live in putney for the annual oxford—cambridge boat race. but next i'll be speaking to performer mystifier uri geller about celebrations about easter celebrations in israel . is . gb news. good afternoon. if you just tuned in. where have you been? sorry. it'sjust tuned in. where have you been? sorry. it's just the start of the show. just coming up to 24 minutes after 3:00. this is gp news on tv, online and on digital radio. i'm nana akua righ

water. month getting from thames water.ant that we treat this as what it is, something that's there to serve the public good and being run in pubuc the public good and being run in public private hands does not public in private hands does not do that. and obviously the evidence us in the evidence is staring us in the face right now. the boat race has become fluid has essentially become the fluid is lava. >> john bosco, i mean, you i've had i've had e.coli infection andifs had i've had e.coli infection and it's really, really not pleasant thankfully pleasant at all. thankfully i wasn't as as some people get wasn't as bad as some people get with mean, you think with it. i mean, do you think you know the boat race maybe should not go ahead. that the water now? water is too polluted now? >> well, i would not, deign to suggest that it doesn't. go ahead. it's a very long, historic event, i think that what should stop happening is, our water being controlled by these companies who cannot get, who cannot get their house in order.

thames is the biggest water company _ for customers?tomers? thames is the biggest water company in the _ for customers? thames is the biggest water company in the country, - for customers? thames is the biggest water company in the country, 16 - water company in the country, 16 million country, £16 billion in debt and that is the problem, it desperately needed an injection of new money. it was meant to get £500 million from its shareholders, which include abu dhabi and chinese state investors, they were going to put £500 million and by tomorrow. but that was conditional on the regulator ofwat agreeing to customer bills going up by 40% over the next five years. ofwat said they were not going to allow that to happen and so the investors have pulled out. they are going to need some money in due course. ten so that it has enough money in the kitty to last the next year—and—a—half nearly but it will need some more money at some stage and without new funding, the pretty new chief executive said nationalisation was possible. it is, i would lik

of thames water chris weston told the bbc.— executive of thames water chris weston told the bbc.aid in conversations with - weston told the bbc. we are as i said in conversations with 0fwat| said in conversations with 0fwat regarding our business plan, and thatis regarding our business plan, and that is important. that is a process that is important. that is a process that will go on until the end of this year, and that creates a business plan that shareholders and anyone who might provide equity can look at and then determine whether they are going to inject equity into thames. i think it is premature to go there at the moment. if at the end of the day probably well into the end of next year we were in a situation where we have no equity, then there is the prospect, as i think simonjack was saying, of special administration. but we are a long way from that point at the moment. a teaching union in england says its members are reporting that levels of violence and abuse from pupils have risen sharply since the pandemic. nearly one in five teachers who responded to a survey commiss

thames water says high rainfall has overwhelmed storm drains. company. we'd like to see water quality being put above profit. we'd like to see people in towns and villages having their sewage treated, and it being returned to the river after being treated, so that we have healthy chalk streams. and we have communities not walking through sewage on their streets. thames is the biggest water company in the uk, serving 16 million customers. but it also has nearly £15 billion in debts. having paid out millions to former shareholders in years gone by, its current owners were due to pump in £500 million by tomorrow — a first instalment and over £3 billion in extra cash — but that depended on the regulator approving a 40% increase in bills over the next five years. 0fwat said no and the cash was withdrawn. the new boss says that the investment needed makes higher bills inevitable. i would argue that that is the price that customers have to pay for the investment in our infrastructure that is needed, and the investment that is required to cope with thin

thames water says high rainfall has overwhelmed storm drains.investment by the company. we'd like to see water quality being put above profit. we'd like to see people in towns and villages having their sewage treated, and it being returned to the river after being treated, so that we have healthy chalk streams. and we have communities not walking through sewage on their streets. thames is the biggest water company in the uk, serving 16 million customers. but it also has nearly £15 billion in debts. having paid out millions to former shareholders in years gone by, its current owners were due to pump in £500 million by tomorrow — a first instalment — and over £3 billion in extra cash, but that depended on the regulator approving a 40% increase in bills over the next five years. ofwat said no, and the cash was withdrawn. the new boss says that the investment needed makes higher bills inevitable. i would argue that that is the price that customers have to pay for the investment in our infrastructure that is needed, and the investment that is require

thames water hospital.water shareholders are refusing to inject extra funding to keep it afloat unless the regulator allows bills to rise by up to 40% over five years. they were due to put in half £1 billion before the end of the month, but have withheld it because they say the business plan is uninvestable . it comes as rowers uninvestable. it comes as rowers taking part in this weekend's boat been warned about boat race have been warned about high of the high levels of e coli in the river thames as a result of the company dumping raw sewage . last company dumping raw sewage. last year's recession was less severe than initially thought, according to new figures from the office of national statistics, which found the economy still shrunk for two quarters in a row. but the total contraction over that six month penod contraction over that six month period dropped from 0.5% to 0.1 percent. a personal message from the king has been broadcast to worcester cathedral, marking the royal maundy service. the queen wa

i mean, i'm a thames water customer , one of a thames water customer, one of those 15 million people, go anywhere else. what we'd river action we'd like to see in river action is, of all, we're thinking is, first of all, we're thinking about races the about the boat races for the rowers to really careful to rowers to be really careful to follow guidance that we've follow the guidance that we've issued partnership issued in partnership with british rivers british rowing and the rivers trust organisation, river trust and my organisation, river action. jump in the water. action. don't jump in the water. and from and then secondly, from a viewer's point view, when viewer's point of view, when you're a race today, you're watching a race today, think about who you vote think hard about who you vote for in the next election. i'm not going tell who you not going to tell you who you should, river health should, but put river health and water at top of water security at the top of your voting priorities because frankly, is nothing more frankly, there is nothing more important clean, healthy imp

thames water says high rainfall has overwhelmed storm drains. charities say it's down to years of underinvestment by the company. we'd like to see water quality being put above profit. we'd like to see people in towns and villages having their sewage treated, and it being returned to the river after being treated, so that we have healthy chalk streams. and we have communities not walking through sewage on their streets. thames is the biggest water company in the uk, serving 16 million customers. but it also has nearly £15 billion in debts. having paid out millions to former shareholders in years gone by, its current owners were due to pump in £500 million by tomorrow — a first instalment and over £3 billion in extra cash — but that depended on the regulator approving a 40% increase in bills over the next five years. ofwat said no and the cash was withdrawn. the new boss says that the investment needed makes higher bills inevitable. i would argue that that is the price that customers have to pay for the investment in our infrastructure that is ne

thames water crisis deepens as shareholders refuse to inject extra money into the uk's largest water company. medics warn of hospitals near collapse in gaza as air strikes and fighting intensifies between israel and hamas. the france school headscarf row — now the france's prime minister pledges legal action against a pupil. hello. we start in the us city of baltimore where rescue divers have recovered two bodies from the water beneath a bridge which collapsed when it was struck by a cargo ship. the bodies of two men were found in a pick—up truck submerged in the icy waters of the patapsco river. four workers remain missing. these are live pictures from the scene where the search for the men has been suspended due to bad weather conditions. salvage crews are working to address dangerous materials and accident investigators are on the scene. our north america correspondent david willis reports 25 feet beneath the surface, near what had been the centre of the bridge, divers recovered a red pickup truck with two bodies inside it. maintenance workers, who'd been repairing potholes at the

bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in bills. get into that in a minute. and finally, the daily star, the full nelson, which is about i'm about storm nelson, which i'm sure of those sure you felt the force of those of pages . all right, of your front pages. all right, chris, let's kick off with the i. we're doing the i strathspey as we are doing the taxpayers may be forced to bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in bills. >> so bosses at thames water have hit a dead end with shareholders over a much needed investment. >> they're not going to give them any more money, so it looks like bankrupt. like they might go bankrupt. that's one of the possibilities. >> in almost £15 billion >> they're in almost £15 billion worth of debt. >> quote mr schaefer, >> to quote mr schaefer, a billion here, a billion there. pretty soon it's real money. >> real money. so there in real money debt. i didn't make that up. but that's a it's an old phrase. sounds a lot to phrase. it sounds a lot to the layman. i mean they, they bailed out 3 bi

michael gove has described the management of thames water as a disgrace.he firm's bosses have admitted it could face the risk of emergency nationalisation , of emergency nationalisation, even as its funding crisis deepens. it comes after shareholders refused to give the troubled company half £1 billion of extra money, describing a rescue plan as uninvestable. instead, they want the off off what? the regulator to increase customers bills by up to 40% over five years, which has so far been resisted. the communities secretary says thames water must take responsibility for its failings. >> for years now we've seen the customers of thames water taken advantage of by successive management teams that have been taking out profits and not investing as they should have been. so the answer is not to hit the consumers. >> the answer is for the management team to look to their own approach and ask themselves why they're in this difficult situation, and of course, the answer is because of serial mismanagement for which they must carry the can. >> teenagers being arreste

water , who's in bed with thames water, who's in bed with thames water, who's in charge of this country but you just mentioned the shareholders of thames water. >> that's a that's a serious accusation . accusation. >> yeah. darren. they got power when they go to shareholders meetings , they can actually meetings, they can actually vote. they can vote ceo in and vote. they can vote a ceo in and out. they can they can vote change agenda. you change the agenda. i think you know that what's happened is, is all of this in, in fairly rapid time as, as almost sunk under the bridge the river. and the bridge in the river. and that's what we're now picking up. so yes, it will take time. there's no doubt about that. the first part of this first the first part of this is the . clean up the mess. the cleanup. clean up the mess. but in order to get there, we've got to get rid of this government. we've got to move it. by the way, i know ben it. and by the way, i know ben sitting alongside you there. it won't the reform, that won't be the reform, party, that same savanta poll showed that, they might co

taxpayers may be forced to bail thames water bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in billsces thames water bailout boss warns of 40% bailout as boss warns of 40% bill rise. i mean can this really be alex batty 40% rise for what? stuff coming out my tap? >> absolutely not. no way is the taxpayer bailing out these people. absolutely astonishing. been raking in huge amounts of money. and the final insult allowing of, know , allowing masses of, you know, sewage to go everywhere. no way. i'm i can't can't see anyone. anyone is going put with anyone is going to put up with this and there's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou and there's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, d there's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, sortere's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, sort of's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, sort of fat sort of, you know, sort of fat cat tier of people who've been raking off, paying themselves tier of people who've been rakingamountsing themselves tier of people who've been rakingamounts of

bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in bills.ll get into that in a minute. and finally, the daily star, the full nelson, which is about i'm about storm nelson, which i'm sure of those sure you felt the force of those of pages . all right, of your front pages. all right, chris, let's kick off with the i. we're doing the i strathspey as we are doing the taxpayers may be forced to bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in bills. >> so bosses at thames water have hit a dead end with shareholders over a much needed investment. >> they're not going to give them any more money, so it looks like bankrupt. like they might go bankrupt. that's one of the possibilities. >> in almost £15 billion >> they're in almost £15 billion worth of debt. >> quote mr schaefer, >> to quote mr schaefer, a billion here, a billion there. pretty soon it's real money. >> real money. so there in real money debt. i didn't make that up. but that's a it's an old phrase. sounds a lot to phrase. it sounds a lot to the layman. i mean they, they bailed out 3

taxpayers may be forced to bail thames water bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in billsames water bailout boss warns of 40% bailout as boss warns of 40% bill rise. i mean can this really be alex batty 40% rise for what? stuff coming out my tap? >> absolutely not. no way is the taxpayer bailing out these people. absolutely astonishing. been raking in huge amounts of money. and the final insult allowing you know , allowing masses of, you know, sewage to go everywhere. no way. i'm i can't can't see anyone. anyone is going put with anyone is going to put up with this and there's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou and there's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, d there's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, sortere's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, sort of's a sort anyone is going to put up with thizyou know, sort of fat sort of, you know, sort of fat cat tier of people who've been raking off, paying themselves tier of people who've been rakingamountsing themselves tier of people who've been rakingamounts of themse

thames water told us it is planning to upgrade it next year.f spills doubling to 3.6 million. these figures are unacceptable and sadly the _ these figures are unacceptable and sadly the result of a lack of investment in the system it combines waste _ investment in the system it combines waste water and gray water it needs upgrading _ waste water and gray water it needs upgrading urgently which is why we plan to— upgrading urgently which is why we plan to sort it out it is with the regulator— plan to sort it out it is with the regulator now and we are keen to get the right— regulator now and we are keen to get the right to _ regulator now and we are keen to get the right to build more capacity in our networks we can bring numbers down _ our networks we can bring numbers down. ., ., ., , .., , down. part of the reason why records have been broken _ down. part of the reason why records have been broken is— down. part of the reason why records have been broken is because - down. part of the reason why records have been broken is because last - have

and as for thames water's 40% increase, i would drop everybody's attention to the idea that thames waterere are rumours circulating it may actually go bankrupt at some point over the next couple of months. the simple truth of that is they need this price increase to refinance a company that they themselves have driven to the bnnk themselves have driven to the brink of bankruptcy. again the regulator sat there and did nothing, presumed only the shareholders have taken a similar pay cut in this time of desperate need. >> fergal , you would like to >> fergal, you would like to think that as it transpires , think that as it transpires, water companies have paid their shareholders £72 billion in dividends over the last 33 years. >> that's your money. perhaps some of that should have been used to fix the sewage system. >> and how much? it's an interesting figure, isn't it ? 72 interesting figure, isn't it? 72 billion. i mean, these are huge numbers, fergal. but if that money had been used for, improving sewage distribution , improving sewage distribution, then could this problem have been avoi

bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in bills.we'll get into that in a minute. and finally, the daily star, the full nelson, which is about i'm about storm nelson, which i'm sure of those sure you felt the force of those of pages . all right, of your front pages. all right, chris, let's kick off with the i. we're doing the i strathspey as we are doing the taxpayers may be forced to bail out thames water as customers face 40% hike in bills. >> so bosses at thames water have hit a dead end with shareholders over a much needed investment. >> they're not going to give them any more money, so it looks like bankrupt. like they might go bankrupt. that's one of the possibilities. >> in almost £15 billion >> they're in almost £15 billion worth of debt. >> quote mr schaefer, >> to quote mr schaefer, a billion here, a billion there. pretty soon it's real money. >> real money. so there in real money debt. i didn't make that up. but that's a it's an old phrase. sounds a lot to phrase. it sounds a lot to the layman. i mean they, they bailed out

thames water crisis deepens as shareholders refuse to inject extra money into the uk�*s largest water in baltimore.

thames dumping sewage thames water is dumping sewage in thames, single in the thames, and every singlemember of the public that i spoke said that they thought spoke to said that they thought privatisation has failed. so do you accept that it is a failure, i think it has been horribly abused and maybe we were naive in not foreseeing the ways in which it would be abused. >> virtually no other european nafion >> virtually no other european nation doesn't have a effectively nationalised water system. >> in fact, no, no other nation has the nhs. i'm not particularly impressed by that argument. thank you. thank you very much. it sounds as though the tories may be washed away by, by the by the tidal flow . by, by the by the tidal flow. thank you very much. albie amankona. paul connew and darren grimes . king amankona. paul connew and darren grimes. king charles is appearing in public this morning for easter sunday service at for the easter sunday service at saint george's chapel, windsor castle . it's his first proper castle. it's his first proper pubuc castle. it's his first proper public eng

. >> thames water shareholders are refusing to inject extra funding to keep it afloat unless the regulatorllows bills to rise. the shareholders were due to invest half £1 billion before the end of the month, but they've withheld it because they say the business plan is uninvestable. it's understood shareholders wanted ofwat to allow a 40% bill hike over five years for customers, and leniency on penalties for breaking regulations . drivers breaking regulations. drivers are being warned to expect long delays as millions set off on their easter getaway trips. the rac has warned that journeys on popular routes could take twice as long as the bank holiday weekend coincides with the beginning of the easter holidays. it's predicted around 14 million journeys are expected to be made , with many this to be made, with many this afternoon seeing some of the worst congestion . well, you can worst congestion. well, you can get the latest on all of our stories by scanning the qr code, which you can find on our later programs. and indeed, you can get the details on our website gb news .com/ alerts. now i

the land is owned by the government and leased out to thames water but now there is an alternative planhildren's home there, for 24 places for vulnerable children. they say it is the first in london, and is needed due to a shortage of places available, which means children face long waits and can move up to 200 miles away from the capital. some people would say this is a good idea and there's obviously need for it, and if it is going to be built anywhere, why not here, as you say, it's a lovely site? we are not experts on the needs for secure facilities for children. we are experts on the needs of our local community and we would argue that this land, the best use for it is for a waterpark. it should be protected from development, it will reconnect the marshes, it will reconnect us with our heritage of the water site. it will bring benefits again to the local community. voice-over: for more - stories from across the uk, head to the bbc news website. tonight us elections, and shutters take a woman's fly. there is a new one on gender inequality in sport. a group of mp say a lack of kit is

the land is owned by the government and leased out to thames water but now there is an alternative planre children home therefore 2a places for vulnerable children and they say it is the first in london and is needed due to a shortage of places available which means children face long wait and can move up to 200 miles away from the capital. move up to 200 miles away from the capital-— the capital. some people would sa this the capital. some people would say this is _ the capital. some people would say this is a _ the capital. some people would say this is a good _ the capital. some people would say this is a good idea - the capital. some people would say this is a good idea and - say this is a good idea and need for it. and if it is going to be built anyway, why not here? ~ ., ., , , ., here? we are not experts on the needs for secure _ here? we are not experts on the needs for secure facilities - here? we are not experts on the needs for secure facilities for - needs for secure facilities for children _ needs for secure facilities for children. we are experts on the needs_ children. we

given its problems, why should we trust thames water to manage the super sewer?ring infrastructure solutions. last month, dolphins were spotted swimming in part of the river thames — a rare sight that could become more frequent once the super sewer starts intercepting sewage this summer. to tell us a little bit more about ec pursuer i am joined by rob ricketts, project manager on this site. —— super sewer. at the very big day for the tunnel and tideway project. indie big day for the tunnel and tideway ro'ect. ~ ., , big day for the tunnel and tideway ro'ect. ~ . , ., ,., big day for the tunnel and tideway ro'ect. ~ . , ., ., , project. we are 'ust about to put the last project. we are 'ust about to put the test piece _ project. we are just about to put the last piece of— project. we are just about to put the last piece of the _ project. we are just about to put the last piece of the jigsaw i project. we are just about to put| the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle together. in east london, this is where _ together. in east london, this is where the — together. in ea

michael gove today described the management of thames water an absolute disgrace after calls to increase customers bills to plug their funding hole. the firm's bosses have admitted it could face the risk of emergency nationalisation as its cash crisis deepens. shareholders have refused to give the company half £1 billion of extra financing, describing their rescue plan laid out to them as uninvestable . instead, uninvestable. instead, shareholders have said they want the regulator off what to increase customers bills by up to 40% over the next five years. mr gove says thames water has behaved in an arrogant way towards its customers and must take responsibility for its failings. >> for years now, we've seen the customers of thames water taken advantage of by successive management teams that have been taking out profits and not investing as they should have been. so the answer is not to hit the consumers. the answer is for management team to look for the management team to look to their own approach and ask themselves why they're in this difficult situation. and of course, the answer is b

it's after thames water handed out millions of pounds worth of dividends to shareholders and bonusesosses have admitted their cash crisis could lead to their cash crisis could lead to the firm's emergency nationalisation and to plug the major funding gap shareholders, which include foreign wealth funds from china and abu dhabi, want to increase customers bills , something the regulator has so far pushed back on. well the water giant is also facing a backlash from campaigners who've called it said they have discharged mind boggling quantities of untreated sewage into the thames, some 72,000,000,000l in fact, between 2020 and 2023, the united nafionsis 2020 and 2023, the united nations is calling on rishi sunak today to scrap his rwanda scheme. the organisation's human rights committee says the government's plan to send asylum seekers on a one way trip to the east african nation should be abandoned or repealed if it passes in parliament. in a report, 18 member states raised concerns of discrimination and potential violations of international law . well, the international law. well, the

through with thames water coming through the tap.ut i live right on the water. and i was told about five years ago when we moved there that it's getting cleaner. there are fish now right inland where i am. there was a seal. it was swimming along and i phoned them to say, you've got to turn it round. the ocean's that way and not this way . and they said, oh no, it way. and they said, oh no, it just goes to prove mr sleep that the waterways are getting so clean now it can find fish to eat up here. two days later it was dead on the beach, so i'm not surprised. i wonder as well, though, if these houseboats, you know, have some thing. you know that houseboat poo. well, well, no , i'm not had horse poo poo. no, i'm not had horse poo poo. i'm not 30,000,000 hours. but i know what i'm not know . what know what i'm not know. what i was saying was not that they're doing i was worried about doing it. i was worried about you know, that must it you know, that they must see it much why were we much more. i mean, why were we only warned yesterday o

but this year on the thames, they're staying out of the water. joe lynskey, bbc news.18—0 at one point. warrington recovered but dragons won relatively comfortably in the end — tom johnstone with two tries. it means the french side are level on points with leaders st helens but are second only on points difference. in the day's other other game, salford red devils beat leigh leopards 32—22. ryan brierley getting on the scoresheet twice. let's have a quick look at some of the other stories today. the punjab kings lost their second successive game in the indian premier league. they were chasing 200 to beat lucknow super giants. an opening century partnership gave them a chance but after jonny bairstow went, the scoring slowed down and they fell 21 runs short. after starting the day second overall, punctures on stage eight and ten ruined elfyn evans's hopes of winning safari rally kenya. the briton managed to bounce back to win stage 12, but he's now fourth overall, more than five and a half minutes behind toyota team mate and overall leader kalle rovanpera. england's dav

thames water has said improving river health was a "key focus" for the company.joy on dry land. the boat race for the students had changed this year through geography, rainfall through the winter, increasing sewage in the thames. the river action campaign group found high levels of e.coli rowers were told to stay out of the water. cambridge went clear in the men's race and stretched out a lead. they put in so much through four miles. some barely had the strength to finish. they won by 10 seconds, but 0xford had an explanation. we've had a few guys go down pretty badly with the e.coli strain. so, i mean, this morning i was throwing up. it would have been ideal not to have so much poo in the water. but, you know, that's not to take away from cambridge. they were a talented crew. i don't know if we would have had a chance to get them, even if we'd all been on form. so it's no way to make excuses. the women's boat race was close until it changed on a moment. oxford, i'm warning you, oxford. that stern word from the umpire was to stop the boats colliding. oxford fell

don't go in the water, don't swallow the water. ellie price, bbc news, on the thames.e arrived in the uk so far in 2024 after crossing the channel has reached a new record high for the first three months of a calendar year. according to provisional home office figures, 338 people arrived in seven boats yesterday, taking the total for the year to date to 4,644. just a quarter of the public think that the health service is working. a survey which questioned people in england, scotland and wales last autumn, showed satisfaction with the nhs has dropped to a record low. more than 70% saying it was because of long waits for gp and hospital appointments. queen camilla has received messages of support for her husband the king and the princess of wales — who are both being treated for cancer — while she was on a visit to shrewsbury today. crowds filled the streets as camilla spoke to stall holders at the farmers market. around 100 people in the uk every day are being told they can't get on flights to parts of europe because of tighter passport rules after brexit. our business

this is because of a recent dump of sewage from thames water. to give you an idea, the level of e.water bad. therefore they are advising people against going into the thames for a swim. we are talking ten times worse than that which is definitely a problem and health concern in the run—up to this event. people were wondering whether this race would actually be happening, should be postpone it. but different organisation committees met up and set up guidelines for the rowers, for the athletes, before and after the race, to ensure that they are safe in these conditions. we are talking whether they are just the water, of course, and i spoke to emergency rescue team here who said that should be ok because they are quite used to it, usually a few stomach bugs after a race like this. we just hope that none of the rowers will end up very badly sick after this race. �* , will end up very badly sick after this race. �*, .,, ., �*, this race. let's hope not. let's talk about _ this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the _ this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the race _ this race.

now they have collective borrowings of £60 billion and there is a particular problem at thames water,lion of debt which it's struggling to service. some analysts argue this has contributed to underinvestment in new pipes and sewers by the companies — investment that would reduce the number of leaks and overflows. as this shows, their total infrastructure investment did increase after privatisation. yet so did the amount of cash being taken out of the companies to pay the shareholders. shareholder dividends paid since 1989, at £72 billion, is equivalent to almost half of total expenditure on capital infastructure over the period. clearly there hasn't been enough investment in infrastructure. what we are seeing with the sewage spills show that we need much more investment in our sewage systems to have a system that is fit for purpose for our country. the industry says all that is changing, and work ended this week on a new £45 billion supersewer in london, designed to reduce overspills into the thames by storing it until it can be treated. back in 2014, there was a lot of excess rainfal

troubled times at thames water, after shareholders refuse to inject more cash, unless bills goes up.a time of need" in a recorded message, for easter. and coming up on bbc news: chelsea manager emma hayes says they can win the elusive champions league trophy in her last season with the club. they're through to the semifinals after beating ajax. good afternoon.

thames water told us it�*s planning to upgrade it next year.he footpath, with the number of hours of spills doubling to 3.6 million. these figures are unacceptable, and they are _ these figures are unacceptable, and they are sadly the result of a lack of investment in the system. our system _ of investment in the system. our system combines waste water and rainwaten — system combines waste water and rainwater. it needs upgrading urgently, which is why we have a plan _ urgently, which is why we have a plan to— urgently, which is why we have a plan to sort_ urgently, which is why we have a plan to sort it out. it is with the regulator— plan to sort it out. it is with the regulator at the moment and we are very keen _ regulator at the moment and we are very keen to— regulator at the moment and we are very keen to get the green light so that we _ very keen to get the green light so that we can bring these numbers down _ part of the reason why records have been broken is because last year was just so wet. but the underlying problem is a lack of inve

the super sewer has cost about £5 billion to build and that's going to be paid for by thames water customersll. if we want to stop sewage spilling into our rivers and seas, water companies and the government have been very clear that it's all of us, who are going to have to pay for it. it smells absolutely gorgeous, really organicy, really humousy. the contents of the super sewer will be pumped to east london. beckton sewage works is the largest sewage works in europe. beckton can treat 27,000 litres of sewage a second, and that process starts with all the things you shouldn't flush down your toilet being filtered out. so about 30 tonnes is removed from beckton a day, which is enormous. that's equivalent of about two double—decker buses, or one and a half of these skips every single day. you have been watching the world today. stay with us. hello there. it's going to stay very unsettled as we head into the easter weekend. and today was certainly very mixed weather. we had some sunshine and some brief warmth of 12 degrees in eastern england before we saw that spell of rain. but it was in scot

the other stories this hour — the crisis at thames water deepens — as shareholders refuse to inject extraa pupil this year in england. welcome to the programme. we'll be taking you live to the west midlands this hour —

under this conservative government's watch, water government's watch, thames water have dumped over 72,000,000,000lwhilst racking up multi—billion pound debts, and reports are now that they could go bust any day. despite this, the government is still refusing to publish their contingency plans for the collapse of our country's biggest water firm. so yes or no. does the prime minister believe that thames water will still exist by the end of the year? >> the prime minister? >> the prime minister? >> yeah, well, mr speaker, it wouldn't be right for me to comment on individual companies. but what i can say is that our ambitious storm overflow reduction plan is backed by £60 billion of capital investment. we now monitor every single storm overflow across england and have legislated to introduce unlimited penalties on water companies that breach their obligations. companies that breach their obugafions.the companies that breach their obligations. the independent regulator and the environment agency have the powers they need to hold water. companies wherever they are to account. >> natalie al fayed . >> na

but this year on the thames, they're staying out of the water. joe lynskey, bbc news.d — tom johnstone with two tries. it means the french side are level on points with leaders st helens but are second only on points difference. let's have a quick look at some of the other stories today the punjab kings lost their second successive game in the indian premier league. they were chasing 200 to beat lucknow super giants. an opening century partnership gave them a chance but after jonny bairstow went, the scoring slowed down and they fell 21 runs short after starting the day second overall, punctures on stage eight and ten ruined elfyn evans's hopes of winning safari rally kenya. the briton managed to bounce back to win stage 12, but he's now fourth overall, more than five and a half minutes behind toyota team mate and overall leader kaller rovanpera. england's aaron rai is 3 shots off the lead during the third round of the houston open. germany's stephanjager leads the field on 8 under after seven holes. in 1949, colin snook was among the record number of portsmouth fans w