The purpose of this paper is the following: firstly, to chart how much economic reform of CEE electricity industries has taken place to date; secondly, to discuss why progress has been so limited; and, thirdly, to consider the prospects over the next few years. In charting the economic progress to...

This paper explores the similarity of the underlying economic problems that lead to the establishment of (a) independent central banks to operate national monetary policies and (b) independent regulatory agencies for telecommunications and other utility service industries. We show that, in both...

It is frequently suggested that regulation by contract can effectively substitute for regulation by a specialist regulatory agency for utility service industries. We examine these arguments and consider legal aspects and the historical experience of the UK as regards railways and electricity. We...

This paper discusses the changing role of electricity system operators in Britain. Until 2008, the UK electricity system operator was the key co-ordinator for a liberalized electricity generation market. However, since 2008, the British electricity system operator has, under the Energy Market...

This paper considers the evolution of the British model of independent utility regulation from the publication of the 1983 Littlechild Report on telecom regulation. Over the last ten years, the model has faced some threats to its pro-competition emphasis, notably in energy regulation and...

More than thirty years since the ‘Littlechild Report’ put forward an agenda for incentive-based and competition-driven regulation, the time has come to reconsider its legacy. This article places the debates surrounding utility regulation in context. First, it suggests that at least three...

The paper has as its main objective the design of a framework for valuing water in England and Wales in the medium-term i.e. 2015–2020/25. However, the paper addresses this in the context of what would be the most appropriate long-run market and trading framework for the efficient abstraction...