Public ownership can mean more than just renationalisation

an article by Gareth Thomas published in New Statesman

In Wales, a publicly owned co-operative has transformed water services.

The ownership of Britain’s utilities matters, but the way in which the argument is so often framed is stuck in the past. This isn’t just a straight choice between the current privatised model or returning to the nationalised gas and electricity boards of old. Instead, there is a strong case for a very different type of public ownership – one that transforms the way these vital services are provided and which, crucially, involves those most directly affected by how the business operates – its consumers and workers.

The privatisation of the utility companies under Margaret Thatcher was supposed to lead to the creation of a competitive market in which customers would shop around for the best deal. But more than a quarter of a century later, six companies dominate the energy market, making excess profits, with too many of their customers paying over the odds.

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