Why is Thames Water in so much trouble?

Ministers have objected to Thames Water's proposed rescue deal, moving the UK's largest water company closer to public ownership.

Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds has written to regulator Ofwat raising concerns about a £10bn deal put forward by the company's lenders.

Thames Water has been trying to stave off financial collapse for the last three years as it struggles under billions of pounds of debts.

The company, which serves about 16 million people across London and southern England, is also struggling to fix leaks, stop sewage spills and modernise outdated infrastructure.

Thames Water's main group of lenders - known as London & Valley Water - has put forward a rescue plan that would involve injecting billions in fresh investment.

Without it, Thames Water is set to run out of cash within a matter of months and could face financial collapse.

The deal would also involve writing down about half of the company's £20bn debt pile, but in return the lenders want leniency from future pollution fines.

But on Tuesday, Reynolds said she was concerned that the offer "does not do enough to protect consumers or the environment".