This Is Why

The revelation that ministers are considering bringing Thames Water into temporary public ownership has reopened the fierce debate over the privatisation of the country's water industry. It comes after the sudden resignation of Thames Water’s chief executive and Sky’s exclusive report into government contingency plans for the firm’s potential collapse. On Sky News Daily, host Niall Paterson speaks to business correspondent Paul Kelso about how Britain’s biggest water company came to be on the brink of collapse and the chairman and founder of River Action, Charles Watson, about whether decades of problems with sewage, leaks and supply could lead to the renationalisation of water firms. Producer: Emma Rae WoodhouseInterviews producer: Alex EddenEditor: Danielle Weekes-Chilufya

The COVID inquiry has started, with the first part looking into how resilient and prepared the country was for a pandemic. Former Conservative prime minister David Cameron, ex-chancellor George Osbourne, health secretary during COVID Matt Hancock and the UK government's chief medical adviser Chris Whitty have given evidence so far. On this Sky News Daily, host Niall Paterson is joined by our health correspondent Ashish Joshi to summarise what's been said so far, and Dr Chaand Nagpaul, former chair of the BMA UK Council from 2017-22 - who represented the medical profession during the pandemic - explores how prepared, or ill-prepared, the UK was for COVID. Producer: Soila Apparicio Assistant producer: Amy Lakin Editor: Danielle Weekes-Chilufya

President Putin's hold on power in Russia has been shaken following a brief mutiny over the weekend led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the boss of the private military group Wagner. An apparent deal between Putin and Prigozhin has the Wagner leader now exiled to Belarus. Joining host Niall Paterson on the Sky News Daily, our correspondent Diana Magnay, in Moscow, describes the feeling within the country on how close Prigozhin's army came. Plus, international affairs editor Dominic Waghorn, in Ukraine, analyses the impact of the mutiny on the war. Producers: Emma Rae Woodhouse and Soila Apparicio Editor: Dave Terris

Saturday 24 June marks a year since the US Supreme Court overturned the Roe v Wade ruling, ending a federal right to abortion access. In 14 states, most abortions are now banned, with no exception for rape or incest in nearly all those states.The overturning was highly controversial with more than 100 global health organisations including the British Medical Association describing it as a "catastrophic blow to the lives of millions of women, girls and pregnant people".On the Sky News Daily, host Niall Paterson is joined by our US correspondent Marth Kelner to explore the impact of Roe v Wade's overturning in Tennessee, and the important role it plays in the abortion debate.Podcast Producers: Sydney Pead, Rosie Gillott and Sarah GoughAssistant Producer: Amy Lakin Editor: Adam Jay

Search and rescue efforts to locate a missing submersible with five passengers inside has become a recovery mission after the US Coast Guard determined there was “a catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber” following finding debris in the search area in the North Atlantic ocean. The deep-sea vessel, called Titan, lost contact with the surface on its way down to view the Titanic shipwreck, a voyage that has become increasingly popular among wealthy tourists.But more than five years ago, industry bodies raised concerns about the safety of the vessel with the company that designed it, warning its "experimental approach" to the expedition could have "catastrophic" outcomes.Today on the Sky News Daily, international correspondent John Sparks reports from the centre of the recovery operation effort in Newfoundland, and Rear Admiral Dr Chris Parry offers an insight into the largely unregulated industry of underwater submersive vehicles.Podcast producers: Soila Apparacio and Sydney Pead Editor: Adam Jay

On 22 June 1948, HMT Empire Windrush arrived in the UK. The ship carried 1,027 passengers and two stowaways on a voyage from Jamaica to London. Of these, more than 800 passengers gave their last country of residence as somewhere in the Caribbean. On arrival in the UK, however, people were often met with racism, a lack of acknowledgement of their professional skills and very different living conditions. The Windrush's arrival has become symbolic of the generation of Commonwealth citizens who came to live in Britain between 1948 and 1973. Some 75 years on, broadcaster Sir Trevor Phillips sits down with Sky News Daily host Niall Paterson to explore the impact and influence of the Windrush generation on British life and culture. You can watch Windrush and Us with Trevor Phillips on Sky News's YouTube channel. Podcast producer: Soila Apparicio Podcast promotions producer: David Chipakupaku Editor: Adam Jay

Right-wing extremism is the greatest danger to democracy in Germany, according to the country’s domestic intelligence agency. The Alternative for Germany Party, Germany’s main far-right party, now attracts a third of voters in the east of the country and the nation is home to over 38,000 registered right-wing extremists. On the Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson is joined by Siobhan Robbins, Sky’s Europe Correspondent who has spoken to members as well as victims of the far-right in Germany. We also hear from Julia Ebner, a senior research fellow at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue and author of Going Mainstream, on how far-right ideas seep into mainstream politics. Podcast producer: Rosie Gillott Assisitant podcast producer: Amy Lakin Interviews producer: Alex Edden Promotions producer: David Chipakupaku Editor: Adam Jay

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has ruled out help for homeowners after the average fixed two-year mortgage rate hit 6% for the first time this year. More than 400,000 people will see their existing fixed deals end between July and September, meaning they could face significant rises to their monthly bills. On the Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson hears from one homeowner whose mortgage is about to go up by £600-800 a month and asks our business correspondent Gurpreet Narwan, why rates have risen again now. Plus, Gráinne Gilmore, from property consultancy Cluttons, explains why rising rates could mean more houses on the market than people wanting to buy them. Podcast producer: Emma-Rae Woodhouse Interviews producer: Alex Edden Editor: Adam Jay

In a speech made to a business forum in St Petersburg, President Vladimir Putin denied Russia is isolated from the rest of the world. But as foreign companies withdraw and many Russian journalists flee the country, it's getting harder to find out what’s going on inside one of the world's most powerful nations. On the Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson is joined by Sky’s Moscow correspondent, Diana Magnay, to discuss how Russia has changed in the decade since she first began reporting there, and what it’s like to work as a journalist inside an increasingly isolated authoritarian state.Podcast producer: Rosie Gillott Editor: Paul Stanworth

Since the pandemic, hundreds of thousands of children in England haven't returned to school. They’re known as “ghost children,” and in the first term of this year, more than 125,000 children were out of school more than in school, a figure that’s doubled since the pandemic. On the Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson is joined by Nick Martin, Sky’s People and Politics Correspondent who has been investigating what is stopping students from returning to class, and Conservative MP Flick Drummond to discuss how to stop children from falling through the cracks.Producers: Sydney Pead and Soila Apparicio Editor: Paul Stanworth