Editor John Sadler writes:

Traditionally it’s the time of year for reviewing the past and anticipating the future. While the Industrial Revolution and the French Revolution were the headlines of the 1790s our canals were built by private enterprise.

They served their purpose well and Britain became industrialised. Ultimately a period of great change, driven by wealth creation, at least for a few industrialists. During the ‘enlightenment’ as this age became known, some were enlightened enough to provide comfortable living quarters for their employees.

The pressure from rail transport started to make canals redundant for trade in the 1840s; by the 1900s many had become unused and derelict. The Government then nationalised what was left in 1948, possibly with the intention of mass closure, especially of the smaller canals. Decline continued until the great revival of the 1960s captured the attention of volunteers and campaigners, some of whom devoted their lives to the regeneration of the network. By this time responsibility for the remaining network, around half of its original length, lay with the British Waterways Board. The Transport Act of 1968 required the Board to keep commercial and cruising waterways open and fit for their specified use. Then following a period of development for leisure and recreation partly funded with public money, the ownership and responsibility passed to the Canal and River Trust charity.

Our traditional post revolution industries are in a period of major decline, canals are back in use but without a clear definition of their purpose or funding. They are used by walkers, fishermen, cyclists, navigators or as an alternative form of housing but how should the revenue be raised for their maintenance? For those who use the network as a home how should democracy be established? If householders don’t like the way their council is run they have the option to vote them out. Although many of the services provided by CRT are similar to those provided by local authorities there are no elections or other controls of its powers.

Richard Parry CEO of Canal and River Trust has announced that he will be stepping down from the role in the summer. We thank him for his achievements over the years but as he has acknowledged, there is a lot still to do. NABO will continue to work with his successor to try to ensure the future of our waterways and navigations. However, it is unlikely that any organisations affected by the actions of the Trust will have any input to the selection of a new CEO.

2025 has commenced with storms of disastrous news. Of the headlines relevant to boaters, the breach of the Bridgewater and the closure of the Huddersfield Narrow by erosion, are currently the most serious. Both will have significant impact on cruising plans at least this year. The current failure at Dunham Massey is not far from the 1971 breach listed as the Bollin Aqueduct failure, which took 2 years and £250,000 (~£3m in today’s value) to repair.

Tempora turbulenta!