Inside United Utilities

Article published: Saturday, March 27th 2010

United Utilities is the North West’s only FTSE 100 company, servicing seven million customers in the region and employing around 8,500 staff – 500 having been shed this year so far. It has 20 subsidiaries and is today the sixth largest water company in the world. Corporations rarely get to that position without ruthless business practices, cynical opportunism and serious political muscle. In these areas, UU excels.

Following the privatisation of North West Water in 1989, United Utilities was officially formed in 1995, following the acquisition of Norweb (the region’s electricity distributor and supplier privatised in 1990). A cursory glance at the board and management team gives you an idea of the sort of business you’re looking at. When it comes to political clout and prestige in the corporate world, these are some real big hitters.

The current chairman is Dr John McAdam, who rose to his position within six months of becoming a director at the company. McAdam, “business big shot”, according to the Times, was previously CEO of ICI, the now Dutch-owned chemical giant. He also currently chairs Rentokil Initial, and is a director for three other companies: J Sainsbury, Sara Lee Corporation and Rolls-Royce Group, one of Britain’s largest arms manufacturers.

Connections to the arms industry run throughout UU. McAdam took over the chairmanship in July 2008 from Sir Richard Evans who was chair of BAE Systems, the fourth largest arms company in the world, for fourteen years. Current Managing Director Charlie Cornish, overseeing business development and international interests, also used to work for BAE.

Evans is also highly connected and very close to the New Labour government. He chaired the ‘Aerospace Innovation and Growth Team’ at the Department of Trade and Industry and the ‘National Defence Industries Council’ in the Ministry of Defence. One industry insider described him as “entirely ruthless” and “one of the few businessmen who [could] see Blair on request”. He was embroiled in the scandal over a £60 million BAE slush fund allegedly used to bribe Saudi officials, which was being investigated by the Serious Fraud Office until Blair shut the case down.

Rotherham MP, former Foreign Office minister and Minister of State for Europe Dennis MacShane has also been a paid “consultant” of the company. The arch-Blairite was paid between £10,000 and £15,000 as UU’s ‘European Advisor’ in 2007.

The government ties don’t end there. UU is part of the ‘Whitehall & Industry Group’, a lobbying firm which works for huge corporations. The group describes itself as trying to build “understanding and co-operation between government and business”. It coordinated the 2004 recruitment of Head of Marketing for the UK National Identity card scheme, currently being trialled in Manchester.

The list of high-level connections could go on forever, like non-exec director David Jones, chairman of UK Coal, part-owned by MULE’s favourite multi-billion pound conglomerate Peel Holdings. Be on the lookout for United Utilities connections in our ‘Who runs Manchester?’ feature.

Andy Lockhart

Previous articles appearing on MULE looking at United Utilities reported the recent job cuts, and on the company’s environmental and service record.

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1. […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by m20network, MULE. MULE said: Inside United Utilities  —   MULE http://shar.es/mphrU […]

   Pingback by Tweets that mention Inside United Utilities  —   MULE -- Topsy.com on March 27, 2010 at 1:07 pm

2. I find this article really bemusing. “Corporate executives in ‘well-connected’ scandal!”… So what?!

   There isn’t any allegation here of serious wrongdoing, or indeed any wrongdoing, by United Utilities. As a UU customer who has been involved in campaigning against the arms industry, the connections to BAE and Rolls Royce don’t concern me. Better these executive ‘big hitters’ concentrate on providing essential services like water than on the arms trade surely?

   Comment by Ryan on March 28, 2010 at 11:07 am

3. Hi Ryan

   This piece isn’t supposed to be uncovering any scandal or wrongdoing – it’s simply a profile. We have done other articles on United Utilities (http://manchestermule.com/article/corporate-power-at-its-best-job-losses-and-rising-profits-at-united-utilities and http://manchestermule.com/article/united-utilities-record-not-exactly-watertight) as part of a feature. There are going to be two more – one on UU’s overseas activities (I’m sure you know about the havoc wreaked by multinational water companies in the global south) and one on water privatisation in the UK (something which has seen massive price rises and declining employment, services and detrimental environmental consequences.

   We are also soon embarking on a project of profiling all of the big companies, institutions and people of the area’s political and business elite – and UU and its people certainly fit that.

   On the arms industry connections, of course it’s normal enough in the corporate world – but that’s surely the point? The same people who run an industry that makes its money out of selling weapons and arms which kill innocent people all over the world and fuel the conflicts around it are running our most basic services and have massive control over so much of people’s everyday lives. Do you think that’s fine and that they have our best interests at heart?

   You can’t even begin to think about changing these things and challenging such orthodoxies until you know a little bit more about them. Something we’re trying to do is build up a resource on the local political environment for people and communities on the ground to use in their campaigns and actions, to help them understand what’s going on around them and take control of their own lives and make them better.

   Andy

   Comment by andyl on March 28, 2010 at 1:28 pm

4. The people of Britain are “up in arms” about Parliamentary scandals, quite rightly.

   But MP’s are merely puppets for the large, multinational companies that “own” Britain and much of the world.

   All the utilities should be in public ownership and be controlled by the workers.
   Mervyn Drage, Manchestwer Unemployed Workers Project.

   Comment by Mervyn Drage on April 7, 2010 at 6:27 pm

5. […] all-round backslapping have been justified by the numerous multi-million pound sell-offs made by UU of many of its non-regulated businesses. Since Ofwat is forcing the company to improve its […]

   Pingback by More jobs expected to go at United Utilities as bosses up own bonuses  —   MULE on July 7, 2010 at 10:54 pm

6. […] all-round backslapping have been justified by the numerous multi-million pound sell-offs made by UU of many of its non-regulated businesses. Since Ofwat is forcing the company to improve its […]

   Pingback by Manchester Mule Article : More jobs expected to go at United Utilities as bosses up own bonuses « Joe Beech on October 20, 2010 at 7:20 pm

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