The MP for South Swindon has said renationalising privatised water companies is not the answer to the crisis at Thames Water.

But, Sir Robert Buckland has been critical of the industry regulator Ofwat.

MPs were debating an urgent question from Labour MP Jim McMahon about the financial resilience of the water industry.

It came after reports the government was in urgent talks about what to do if Thames Water, which supplies water to Swindon and North Wiltshire, folded as a company.

It has nearly £15bn in debt - which works out as £1,000 of debt for every one of the 15 million people the largest water company in the UK serves.

Although the government is looking at taking the company back into public ownership, at least temporarily, to keep the water supply going, Conservative MP for South Swindon Robert Buckland said renationalisation was not the answer.

He said: “Swindon residents will be concerned about the future of Thames Water, so I ask my honourable Friend [the Secretary of State] please to keep me and colleagues updated on any issues relating to that.

“Underlying this issue, Labour’s model will clearly never work—we must understand that only the private sector will be able to invest.

“Labour members bleat now, but they did nothing about it when they were in government.”

He then went on to ask questions: "Is the point not that where we have in effect monopoly, the regulator must be as effective as possible?

"Will my honourable Friend do everything possible to ensure that Ofwat is working in the full interests of customers? Aspects of its operation do not seem to pass that test.”

There has been criticism of Thames Water’s previous major shareholder, the Australian bank Macquarie, which owned Thames Water between 2006 and 2017.

It is reported that Macquarie left Thames with an extra £2.2bn in loans and £2.7bn was taken out in dividends, while the water company’s debts rose sharply from £3.4bn to £10.8bn under its ownership.

Ofwat was also questioned when it allowed Macquarie to buy Southern Water in 2021.

The nationalised water industry was privatised in 1989 by Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government, with the rationale that private companies would be more efficient and would also be able to make the necessary investment for upgrading often ageing pipes and infrastructure.

The sale raised £7.6bn for the exchequer, but £50bn of historic debt was written off, and £1.5bn of taxpayer’s money was given to the newly privatised companies.