Water and roads - Utilities are too valuable to sell off

THE floods and the coldest winter in decades conspired to give us a reality check that could well turn out to be a blessing.

They may finally force us to accept political failure has real, tangible consequences and we have to act if we want change.

The discomfort and physical challenges that followed these relatively minor weather events, in global terms, were undeniable but disproportionate. They probably had far more impact than any number of well-meaning political or environmental polemics.