The implementation of CRT’s draconian new Licence Terms and Conditions has been delayed by at least a month. In a meeting with some of the boating user groups, CRT stated that the new Terms and Conditions would be implemented on 1st May. This appears to be due to the number of objections received from boaters and the number of legal challenges raised by those who responded. Many of those who objected pointed out that the proposed new terms and conditions were in breach of the British Waterways Acts 1971, 1983 and 1995; the Data Protection Act 1998; the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008; Article 8 and Article 1, Protocol 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Detailed, comprehensive objections were sent by two user groups, the National Association of Boat Owners (NABO) and the National Bargee Travellers Association (NBTA). You can read NABO’s objections in full here www.nabo.org.uk
Many boaters who sent their objections to CRT received an email on Thursday 2nd April from Sian Ferry of CRT. Ms Ferry is the Project Manager of the Towpath Mooring Management Project, which was originally called the Towpath Mooring Control Project. It is significant that the revision of the Licence Terms and Conditions is being handled by this project, which was set up primarily to reduce the numbers of liveaboard boaters without home moorings. Clearly CRT plans to use the revised Terms and Conditions as an extra arm of the enforcement process against boaters without home moorings.
This is the message from Ms Ferry:
Many thanks for your email, and for taking the time to read through the recently amended licence T&Cs and send through your comments. This has been referred to our legal team, who will prepare responses to the matters raised with the aim of sending through a response during the week beginning April 13th.
Best wishes,
Sian
Sian Ferry
Project Manager
See also
http://kanda.boatingcommunity.org.uk/crt-spending-500k-to-reduce-our-numbers/
Tags: Boat Licence Terms and Conditions, Data Protection Act, NABO, NBTA, Sian Ferry, towpath mooring control project, towpath mooring management project, unfair contracts, Waterways Act 1995