ABSTRACT
Rather than repeating the conclusions for each of the precedmg chapters, this chapter seeks to provide a broad but necessarily tentative assessment of the record of the privatized ESI to date (early 1996). The assessment must remain tentative because numerous elements have yet to be played out. Nevertheless, it is clear that the privatization and associated restructuring of the UK electricity supply industry (ESI) has fundamentally changed the character of the industry. Previously, the industry's management had been dominated by engineers, and the trade unions had considerable influence. Before privatization, the industry regarded electricity as a public service to be universally available, and the monopoly structure enabled full pass-through of costs. Now, electricity is regarded as being no dfferent from other products, and the emphasis is firmly on commercial objectives.
