South East Water Boss Quits After Supply Crisis
David Hinton has said he will leave his job as head of South East Water. He said his role had become a distraction from fixing water supply problems.
Water outages hit tens of thousands of homes in Kent and Sussex in England. A first wave cut water to around 24,000 homes in November and December.
A second wave hit up to 30,000 homes. The company chair Chris Train quit a week before Hinton's announcement.
Both left after a UK parliament committee said it had no confidence in South East Water's leaders. Hinton will stay on while the company finds a new leader over the summer.
He first joined South East Water's board in 2013. Water regulator Ofwat is also looking into the company. Ofwat is considering a £22 million fine for supply problems between 2020 and 2023.
Key Terms 3
- South East Water A company that supplies water to homes in south-east England
- Ofwat The UK body that oversees and regulates water companies
- No confidence A formal statement that leaders are not trusted to do their job