This reminds me of how (in some parts of Europe at least) a lot of communities are trying to buy back the municipal water and power plants that were originally privatised "because privatisation benefits the economy". Turns out creating a (new) monopoly by selling all the public infrastructure to the same company isn't actually good for anyone (other than that company).
Interesting thing here is that is an example of why privatisation is bad (the people get scammed), but at the same time an example of government's administrative incompetence (which can be an argument for privatisation).
Personally, I'm tired of all this neoliberal bullshit and would rather just figure out a way to make our public institutions run extremely well.
It's of a piece with the other 80s privatisations: rather than provide services by the state, move them into the private sector (but still paid for by the state), guaranteeing profits to the purchasers.
Australia has followed America in making that mistake too, sadly. Other countries as well I assume. The politicians that push this, seem to make sure it’s their cronies that are the ones that get to make billions off said privatisation, too.
You might have a point if one of the reliable features of privatisations in the UK over the last few decades hadn't been a steady stream of ministers pushing through privatisation - often at significant public cost - and then parachuting straight into the board of the privatised company.
This is a bazillion times worse than cash in an envelope, because it's straightforward larceny of public resources, papered over with some thin PR nonsense about "efficiency".
This current government isn't even pretending to do anything else. There have been so many no-bid contracts for "PPE supply" handed out to cronies with no PPE experience - and no PPE delivered, while lethal shortages continue - that there are are now formal legal challenges working their way through the courts.
I think you understand the situation perfectly. I'm similarly at a loss to explain why anyone thinks it was ever a good idea to privatise, unless you're one of the few directly profiting from the situation.
Not sure what privatisations have to do with the problem. My understanding is that it is a combination of a technical problem (corrosion happening at an unexpected pace) and the impact of covid lockdowns which deferred critical maintenance.
Did blinders cause you to only look at the private ownership bit?
OP seemed relatively clear that it was the concept of privatising the profit, socialising costs part he didn't like much.
"Privatise the profit, push the risk/cost to the local community"
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