Queen's Speech cuts chance of near-term UK utility reform - Fitch

"The UK government's two-year legislative plan set out in the Queen's Speech on Wednesday suggests utilities are unlikely to face widespread price caps or other significant market reforms in the near future," Fitch ratings said in a recent report.

Key quotes:

• Queen's Speech, which opens each session of the UK parliament, only made reference to tackling "unfair practices" in the energy market to help reduce bills
• Briefing notes to the speech also do not mention a cap, but say the government is still looking at ways to extend "price protection"
• Similarly, the government has been considering introducing retail competition for household water customers since 2015 and it is reviewing the cost-benefit analysis that the regulator published in September 2016
• This is likely to become a lower priority given how much harder it will be for a minority government to pass legislation and the amount of parliamentary time that will be taken up with Brexit
• Depending on how they were implemented, both of these measures could be credit negative for Fitch-rated water and energy utilities, and the election result therefore alleviates near-term risks