This drought was avoidable
At the time of writing nine out of fourteen regions across Britain have declared droughts. Thousands have seen their taps run dry. Farmers are predicting up to 50% losses on crop yields. Cattle and other livestock are likely to be slaughtered early as farmers run out of feed. We have just lived through a long dry spell culminating in the hottest, driest July since 1935. But this drought was entirely avoidable: the result of staggering mismanagement and profligacy by the UK’s privatised water companies. Since these natural monopolies were privatised in 1989 they have prioritised enriching their...