Union leaders today attacked plans by a water company to axe jobs, complaining that the “burden” of keeping down costs was falling on to workers.

Anglian Water said it was slimming down its head office functions, adding: “This is part of the company’s plan to reduce costs as it prepares to drive customer bills down over the next five years and meet the pressures of the prolonged recession.

“All efforts will be made to minimise redundancies, but 86 jobs are at risk in the proposals. However, 46 new jobs are being created as part of the restructuring, which means that it is anticipated only around 40 jobs may be lost.”

Mick Ainsley of the GMB said: “These proposed job losses arise from the Ofwat review of the water industry, with the burden of keeping costs down falling yet again on water workers.

“Financial engineering has ensured that the water industry monopoly yields the usual fat returns to bond holders who take no risk whatsoever.

“These returns stay high as customers pay ever higher prices and workers pay with their jobs. The Tories and their friends in the City who privatised this natural monopoly are shameless in the face of this great rip-off.”