Chamber and committees

The charging statement, which takes account of responses to the consultation, confirms the charging principles that the Water Industry Commission for Scotland will apply when determining water charge caps for 2010-14.

The key features of the statement are:

recognition of the importance customers attach to stability and certainty of charges;

that the existing principles of charging: full cost-recovery, cost-reflectivity, geographical harmonisation of charges, phasing of increases and paying for increased local capacity are maintained until 2014;

that the water services charges exemption scheme should be retained in its present form until 2014;

that the commission will phase in any unwinding of cross-subsidies over the 2010-14 period, but may extend this over a further regulatory period, and

that the maximum size of the capital programme should be around £2 billion.

These principles are essential to ensuring that Scottish Water can continue to be successful and maintain its significant contribution to the government''s strategic objectives for Scotland. Ministers will finalise their principles in September 2009 following the publication of the commission''s draft charges determination for the 2010-14 period.

This is an enhancement to the service currently provided in the West of Scotland where primary angioplasty treatment is only available at the Golden Jubilee Hospital. It is also worth noting that had Ayr accident and emergency closed, then no heart attack patients would have been treated there.