Now, water bosses, you must show how capitalism can work for the common good | Will Hutton

If there's a lesson to be learned from the collapse of Thames Water, it is that utility giants have to pioneer a new kind of companyThere is universal agreement that privatisation was never meant to result in news like this. Last week, the government announced it was on standby to take Thames Water - our biggest water company, serving 15 million people - into "special administration" as its ?15bn of debt threatens to overwhelm it and its CEO resigned. What went so wrong? Is this proof that public ownership should immediately be restored?After all, we've witnessed a litany of debacles, from the government's takeover of TransPennine Express and electricity supplier Bulb to the creation of Great British Railways to integrate the fragmented management of the rail system. It's safe to say that privatisation cannot be trumpeted as an unalloyed success. Continue reading...