SIGOMA Chair calls for cap on private profit in public services

Posted on August 20, 2026

SIGOMA Chair, Mayor Chris Cooke, has urged the Government to go further in tackling profiteering in public services, calling for profit caps on statutory services such as social care and school meals in comments reported by BBC News:

'"There are far too many providers with less good practices than a lot of the local authority provision," the mayor said.

"What we are seeing is absolute gouging on pricing which is unfair, so I really welcome some of the reform that's coming on the private sector profiteering, but it doesn't go quite far enough."...

Cooke, who grew up in foster care, said there should be "a profit cap on anything that is statutorily required".

He cited school meals as a service which should not be left vulnerable to profiteering as it is "a fundamental part of a child's day".

"Profiteering on what is a statutory meal is not moral," he said.'

You can read the full article on BBC News here.