Continuous Cruisers « Kennet and Avon Boating Community Website

Continuous Cruisers

The original reason this website was set up, the campaign by British Waterways to remove all liveaboard boaters from the Kennet and Avon who have no permanent mooring. The so-called continuous cruisers.

Report of Community Involvement in Managing Local Moorings meeting

Thursday, June 24th, 2010

The meeting on June 1st about Community Involvement in Managing Local Moorings was organised by Wiltshire Council to discuss BW’s proposals for a local mooring strategy between Bath and Devizes. About 150 people attended. Damian Kemp was the only BW representative there. The meeting was chaired by Councillor Fleur de Rhé Phillippe.

Damian announced that BW would be going ahead with its plan for a local mooring strategy for the western Kennet and Avon between Bath and Devizes. He explained how the local mooring strategy steering group would work.

Wiltshire Fire Service offer to help the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust

Thursday, June 10th, 2010

By now you may have met Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service cycling along the towpath giving out fire safety advice and free smoke detectors. They may look a bit like BW staff as they will be wearing the Fire Service uniform of blue shirt, black trousers and also a life jacket, so make sure you don’t mistake them for the boat checkers or enforcement officers, because a smoke detector could save your life, whereas a patrol notice is only useful for starting fires.

On second thoughts, keep the patrol notices and threatening letters, as you may wish to refer to them when making a complaint to BW about unlawful enforcement.

“I Never Give In To Bullies” – A Letter To BW

Sunday, June 6th, 2010

Two years ago, BW proposed in a previous consultation to increase the licence fee for boats without a home mooring by £150. This plan provoked enormous opposition from boaters. One of the responses to that 2008 consultation summed up how many of us feel. We decided it was time to share this inspiring and angry letter with other boaters. Here is an edited version.

18/10/2008

Dear Mr Salem

I have read British Waterways’ response to the BWAF report on boat licence fees and this is my response to that. I live on a boat and have done so for 18 years, I am an individual and speak for myself and do not subvert that right to user groups, whoever they might be.

The points I take exception to, which I believe are the main purpose of the exercise, are those relating to the so-called ‘continuous cruiser’ which is the absurd name and concept applied to people who live on boats who neither need nor want a permanent mooring.

The “Continuous Cruising Procedure” and CC3 letters

Thursday, May 27th, 2010

A boater recently made a Freedom of Information request about the number of boats BW had either taken to court or removed following a CC3 letter. The CC3 is the letter which terminates the boat licence in what BW like to call the “Continuous cruising procedure”. The boater asked the following questions

Public Meeting on Local Moorings Strategies, June 1st in Devizes

Thursday, May 27th, 2010

BW is to hold a public meeting on June 1^st, at Devizes Corn Exchange at 6.30pm, to announce its plan to go ahead with local mooring strategies. This is despite the fact that 73 of the 98 responses to the consultation on developing local mooring strategies, and 88 out of 161 responses to the national consultation, opposed the plan. Quite a few boaters are planning to go to this meeting. It is an opportunity to tell BW what we think of the proposals. Anyone can attend but you need to book a place. The meeting is being hosted by Wiltshire Council. If you want to go, contact Margaret Tipper at Wiltshire Council on 01225 718441 or email her: margaret.tipper@wiltshire.gov.uk

Consultation stitch-up part 2

Thursday, May 27th, 2010

Some boaters have now looked at all the responses to the consultation on Moorings Policy for England and Wales (the national consultation). The responses to this bigger consultation also show a majority opposed to local mooring strategies. Of 161 responses, 88 were against local mooring strategies, 48 in favour, and 25 either did not answer the question or were neither in favour nor against. We are still seeking answers from BW

Council Tax and Liveaboard Boaters

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

There have been a number of accusations recently that boaters do not pay Council Tax and so should not benefit from local services. This is incorrect. British Waterways pays the Government a composite levy in respect of Council Tax and Business Rates. This is collected centrally and the income is used to offset general central Government payments to local authorities through the Rate Support Grant. Therefore, anyone who pays a boat licence fee to BW contributes to this composite levy in respect of Council Tax.

Kennet and Avon Canal User Group meeting transcript

Friday, May 7th, 2010

Thanks to an extremely competent minute taker, we can now publish a transcript of the User Group meeting on 29th April here. Read all about it!

k&a-users-forum-290410

Posted in BW Policy News and FOI Act Requests, Continuous Cruisers, Moorings Consultation, News | 1 Comment »

BW proposals based on misuse of statistics

Wednesday, February 24th, 2010

BW has misrepresented its own statistics in order to make a case for the proposals finalised in the Local Mooring Strategies consultation. These proposals were based on analysis of statistics about “continuous cruisers” presented in the pre-consultation document Updating BW’s Online Mooring Policy (April 2009).

Boaters are Travellers

Friday, February 5th, 2010

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has given its opinion that ‘bargee travellers’ are covered by Section 225 of the Housing Act 2004 which defines who is a traveller.

Kennet and Avon Boating Community Website