There was a flow of good news for United Utilities when it reported full-year profits up 10 per cent and “no nasty surprises” on bad debts and revenue.

Pre-tax profits rose from £478m to £530m, on turnover up from £2.36bn to £2.43bn. Underlying operating profit increased 10 per cent from £677m to £742m. The full-year dividend is cut from 46.67p to 32.67p, with a 22.03p final, but this had been flagged. Earnings per share fell from 61.2p to 26.5p.