London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 16, 2025

Taxpayers could face higher bills after £11bn waste management merger, watchdog warns

Taxpayers could face higher bills after £11bn waste management merger, watchdog warns

The UK regulator has the power to order the sale or divestment of part or the whole of a business if it ultimately concludes that there are competition concerns outstanding.

The competition regulator has threatened to intervene in an £11bn merger between two French companies over fears it could lead to higher bills for UK councils and taxpayers.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the tie-up between Veolia and Suez - which was agreed earlier this year - could lead to a loss of competition in the supply of waste and recycling services to councils and businesses.

The companies operate globally and, as such, the deal has attracted the interest of market regulators worldwide.

The CMA said it was giving the pair five working days to put forward proposals to address its concerns or its investigation would move to a more in-depth inquiry.

Recycling is separated at a Veolia waste management facility in south east London


The watchdog has the powers to order the sale or divestment of part or the whole of a business if it ultimately concludes that there are competition concerns outstanding.

Why is the CMA worried?


It said of its initial findings: "In particular, the CMA is concerned that Veolia and Suez are 2 of only a small number of suppliers active within the UK that are able to service the largest and most complex waste management contracts with councils.

"As a result, the merger could lead to higher prices and lower quality services across a range of waste management activities in the UK."

It also flagged worries over the impact on several water management markets, where a lack of competition after the merger could mean that industrial customers would also have to pay higher prices.

The regulator's chief executive, Andrea Coscelli, added: "Councils spend hundreds of millions of pounds on waste management services.

"Any loss of competition in this market could lead to higher prices for local authorities, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill, and reduced innovation to achieve net-zero targets.

"Everyone in the UK uses waste and recycling services in some way; it is therefore vital that this deal is subject to more detailed scrutiny if our concerns aren't addressed."

Suez and its staff had opposed Veolia's takeover interest which followed the purchase of a major stake from energy firm Engie


The CMA's intervention means that the merger, while agreed in April, is yet to be fully completed as Veolia is understood to still need formal clearance from four of 18 jurisdictions, including the EU and UK.

The French companies, according to the Reuters news agency, have already offered asset sales to address competition concerns in the European Union.

Veolia said of the CMA's intervention: "Veolia remains convinced that the combination with Suez can be carried out under conditions that allow healthy competition to be maintained in the UK market."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
×