Dear friends

I wanted to update you on the legal challenge that NABO has made to BW. You will have seen the text in the latest NABO News. NABO News is widely distributed including the waterways press,

and you may have seen and will continue to see that the story line has been taken up. This is one such item:

We have a reply from BW, and we have acknowledged that. Part of the reply is an invitation to a meeting, and we will consider that positively. The point in making the formal complaint in the first place was the track record in “listening”, so who we might meet is an important consideration.  We have taken legal advice over the response. In view of the short time to the AGM, nothing more will be done until after that event and we have said this to BW. Then the newly elected  NABO Council can fully consider the next move.

Somewhat related is BWs recent launch of the long awaited consultation on moorings. The text below is cut from the press release.  The consolation documents can be seen on:

This is clearly important to us all and has the potential to impact all lifestyles on the BW waterways. This is work for the new Council in December and January to make a response. But I would appeal to you all to make individual responses to BW, and also share your thoughts with Council so that NABO can represent a wide range of views. The document in Appendix 2 also sets out some of BW’s thinking on the legal framework, and that is worth reading too.

I do hope you will come to the AGM and express your views on these and other issues.

David

MOORINGS POLICY FOR BW’S NETWORK IN ENGLAND AND WALES

– Public Consultation Autumn 2009 –

British Waterways (BW) has launched a three month consultation inviting views on its proposed policy for both leisure and residential moorings in England and Wales. Addressing some of the challenges arising from the sustained growth and popularity in boating, the consultation primarily considers how mooring space along the waterways should be managed.

This consultation is about three related areas of moorings policy:

• Firstly, where, and for how long, boats should be permitted to moor in areas of particularly high usage. This could see rules pertaining to length of stay being set through a process of local, stakeholder-led mooring strategies in areas where problems are most pressing. It could also include the levying of daily charges for overstaying boats at particularly congested short term moorings;
• The second policy is not new: it simply re-states for the purpose of context BW’s commitment to control expansion of long term mooring along the line of the canal and to reduce it when new offline marinas are opened;
• Finally, the consultation recognises a particular growth in residential boating and sets out BW policy, including the encouragement of further official residential moorings at suitably located and well managed mooring sites.