The Infrastructure Podcast: Episode 163

Guest: Chris Taylor-Dawson, Senior Director for Major Water Infrastructure at regulator Ofwat

A new vision for water

In this episode we are talking about the once-in-a-generation reckoning currently facing the British water industry. 

Following the publication of the final report from Sir Jon Cunliffe’s Independent Water Commission last summer - and most recently the landmark January 2026 White Paper, "A New Vision for Water," the regulatory landscape across the sector is being completely redrawn. 

To discuss these changes and the implications for the supply chain, I am joined today by Chris Taylor-Dawson, Senior Director for Major Water Infrastructure at regulator Ofwat, someone who is, without question, at the heart of this transition. 

And there is certainly a huge amount for Chris to get across. To start with Ofwat itself will be reborn via a merger with the Drinking Water Inspectorate, and some functions of the Environment Agency and Natural England, to create a new single integrated regulator.

And there is a huge amount of work to do on the ground following the latest AMP8 price review. Water companies are committed over the next five years to at least 30 major infrastructure projects, including perhaps nine new reservoirs, as part of a complex £50 billion pound major projects pipeline.

And with Ofwat’s recent Economic Impact of Water Supply Infrastructure report highlighting that continued water scarcity could significantly stifle economic growth, the urgency is certainly growing.

Fortunately, Chris is a calm head when it comes to meeting this kind of challenge and brings a wealth of experience from his previous career delivering major projects for National Highways.

I last spoke to him in November at the Transforming Infrastructure Performance Summit in London and it’s fair to say the challenges have become clearer since then. 

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