A group of academics has drafted a private letter to USS regarding their investment in Thames Water. I think most of you know the story – USS is the main pension fund for UK academics, and they are a major shareholder of Thames Water. USS invested nearly £1 billion in Thames Water, made despite many warning signs including underinvestment in water services, polluted rivers and an inadequate drought response. The investment was so badly managed that nearly £1 billion had to be written off as worthless. USS has reported that they are holding an internal investigation into the investment and learning lessons from this, but there has been no statement to members as to what changes have followed.
So please sign the letter (signatories will be kept private) and let’s see if we can find out what USS has learnt from this investment (and environmental) disaster: