‘Dirty Business’ stars launch petition calling for referendum on water ownership

Peter Hammond and Ashley Smith, the real campaigners portrayed in Channel 4’s Dirty Business, have launched an official government petition to hold a referendum to bring the water industry into public ownership

Many viewers were left outraged after watching Channel 4’s Dirty Business, a three-part docu-drama that highlights the murky world of the English water industry. The drama exposed the complicity of the regulators, the criminality of the water companies and the deadly health risk to the public.

Peter Hammond and Ashley Smith, the real campaigners portrayed in the series, are calling on viewers to turn their outrage into action by signing their petition to hold a referendum to bring the water industry into public ownership. The petition is backed by Feargal Sharkey, campaigner and musician.

Ash Smith says, “I think people are sick of being told they can’t have healthy rivers and seas, just because powerful financiers want to keep making money from our water bills. Our government is listening to them but not to us, so this is how we stop being victims and start fighting back.”

According to Windrush Against Sewage Pollution (WASP), the Government’s forthcoming Water Bill was shaped by a review process that spent more time consulting financiers and the water industry than the public it is supposed to serve and offers no referendum, no public ownership review and no meaningful say for the people footing the bill. Leading economists and accountants say ownership change can be achieved for as little as zero cost to billpayers.

Supporters say the issue ultimately comes down to decisions based on evidence, not influence. A referendum would provide a clear democratic mandate on one of the most fundamental questions facing the country: whether the water industry should remain in private hands or be in modern, public ownership.

You can sign the petition here: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/762640