Committee publication · Correspondence · 2 September 2025
Correspondence from United Utilities regarding legal fees, dated 1 August 2025
From: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Inquiry: Reforming the water sector
Summary
United Utilities' CEO Louise Beardmore responds to the EFRA Committee's July 2025 inquiry on legal fees, regulatory actions, and legal team structure. The company spent approximately £200,000 on external legal fees over five years (2020–2024) relating to Environment Agency enforcement, an Ofwat wastewater investigation, and water abstraction prosecution. United Utilities has not challenged Ofwat price reviews or sued regulators. The legal team comprises 30 members, with 4.5 qualified lawyers dedicated to regulatory and environmental compliance.
Key findings
- £200,000 spent on external legal fees (2020–2024) primarily for EA prosecution (water abstraction at Franklaw and Broughton Boreholes, August 2023), EA enforcement undertakings, EA notices, and Ofwat wastewater investigation
- United Utilities received two formal Ofwat regulatory actions in five years: adverse finding on private land work (£500 payment, complied 100%) and sector-wide wastewater investigation (formal enforcement phase July 2024, no determination yet)
- Environment Agency issued 1,703 Compliance Assessment Report forms with 478 actions, 208 warning letters, 8 Regulation 36 enforcement notices, and 1 prosecution (all complied with at 100%)
- Drinking Water Inspectorate imposed 294 recommendations, 18 notices, 3 undertakings, 1 enforcement order, 3 warnings, and 1 caution—all complied with at 100%
- Legal team of 30 staff includes 4.5 qualified lawyers handling regulatory and environmental matters; remaining team supports £13bn AMP8 investment, land transactions (53,000 hectares), customer claims, and debt recovery
Tone
ProceduralTopics
Key actors
Alistair Carmichael, Louise Beardmore, United Utilities, Environment Agency, Ofwat, Drinking Water Inspectorate, RPC Solicitors, Professor Carolyn Roberts
Notable line
“… legal checks and balances are there to resolve conflicting views and interpretations, should they arise.”
Key Quotes
“Regulation can be ambiguous, multi layered and sometimes inconsistent across regulators 1 and the refore, legal checks and balances are there to resolve conflicting views and interpretations, should they arise.”
“United Utilities has not brought any legal action against Ofwat, the Environment Agency ( EA) or Drinking Water Inspectorate ( DWI) in the last 5 years and nor has it ever appealed Ofwat's price reviews .”
“Over the last five years (1 January 2020 to 31 December 2024), the company has spent in total approximately £200 ,000, exclusive of VAT, on external legal fees in relation to regulatory actions .”
“The EA prosecution noted above relate d to over abstraction of water at Franklaw and Broughton Boreholes in August 2023. United Utilities did not contest the offence and pleaded guilty.”
“In total, the United Utilities ' legal team currently consists of thirty members, of which 4 .5 member s are qualified lawyers that deal with regulatory and environmental matters of the type overseen by Ofwat, the EA and the DWI.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗