Thames Water secures £750m cash injection 

Thames Water shareholders have agreed to a cash injection of £750 million in funding as the company attempts to fight the threat of government control. 

The company – which serves a quarter of the UK’s population – also said it would be looking for an extra £2.5bn between 2025 and 2030. 

Thames Water has come under fire recently over sewage spills and leaks have contaminated rivers and seas. The water firm is also struggling under a mountain of debt. 

The government has said it is ready to act if the company collapses. 

The company was in talks last month to secure extra funding, and the chief executive Sarah Bentley quit after two years amid outrage over the sewage spills. 

There was speculation that if the company, which has debts of around £14bn, failed to secure fresh funds, it could be taken over by the government until a new buyer is found. 

But the water firm’s new interim boss Cathryn Ross told the BBC’s Today programme the company was “absolutely not” close to requiring government intervention.

This route was most recently taken with energy supplier Bulb after it ran into financial difficulties.