Public Accounts Committee

29 juin 2026

The Chair sets the inquiry’s scope on regulation of water, energy and broadband, frames concerns around utility debt and vulnerable consumers, and invites the first panel of consumer advocates to outline cross‑sector challenges and vulnerability issues.

Public Accounts Committee

00:07 - 01:52

Intervenant 3

Order, order. Welcome to the Public Accounts Committee on Monday the 29th of June 2026. Millions of people across the UK experience permanent or temporary circumstances that prevent them from engaging with the three essential services for modern daily life: water, energy and broadband. The regulators of these three services, Ofwat, Ofgem and Ofcom, have statutory duties to protect or further the interest of consumers, including those in vulnerable financial circumstances. The NAO's report on this subject found that these regulators had made progress in clarifying expectations of how far companies should support their consumers in vulnerable financial circumstances.

However, as we all know, significant challenges still remain with consumer debt to water and energy companies reaching a staggering £7.2 billion in March '25, and many consumers still find it difficult to contact their company in the event that something goes wrong. So today we're very fortunate to have with us a panel of real expert witnesses with a huge wealth of knowledge and experience working in these industries or with customers in these industries ahead of questioning government officials later this afternoon. We will be asking them what they think the barriers and challenges are to those vulnerable customers in financial circumstances engaging with water, energy, broadband services amongst a number of other key issues. And we are very pleased to have, as I say, a very experienced panel this afternoon. I'm going to ask them to introduce each of themselves.

Martin, would you like to start with you in the center and then either your left and right as well.

01:52 - 01:58

Intervenant 5

I'm Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert and founder of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute.

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