Boat licence ‘holiday’ needed to be longer

BOATER Richard Heasman (nb Lady

Grace) telephoned Towpath Talk regarding the Canal & River Trust’s licence ‘holiday’ during lockdown.

He told us: “I have not been able to use my narrowboat for 14 weeks during the lockdown but have been paying my boat licence monthly.

“I have been told by CRT that I will get one month ‘free’ but am expected to pay fees for the other months when we have been unable to use our boats. I pay the licence fee for time on the waterway which was ‘shut down’ until July 4. It wasn’t our fault that we couldn’t use it.”

A Canal & River Trust spokesman replied:

To recognise the restriction on boat movement during lockdown, we extended all leisure boat licences by one month at no cost to boaters. This is one of several measures we’ve taken to support boating during the crisis, including licence support for business boat operators, extending the length of BSS certificates, and individual support for those most affected.

The impact on the boating businesses that make their living on our waterways has, in many cases, been immense. With no hire or trip boats operating during the lockdown, most of these have seen all their income dry up. To help ensure that boating businesses can get through the crisis we’ve deferred all licence fee payments for business boat companies on the waterways for four months.

Ultimately, we all need the Government to act to provide support for people and boating businesses, who have suffered financial impact and we are doing what we can to raise this.

Together with British Marine and the Broads Authority we have been lobbying Government to plead the case to support the inland waterway sector.

The trust is facing significant financial challenges, with a large and costly historic network to maintain and keep safe during this crisis, and we depend upon the income we earn to fund that work – with everything being funnelled back into looking after the waterways.

With far fewer visitors to our waterways, our museums and attractions closed, reducing income from business and leisure boats, and a likely knock-on impact on our investment income from the wider economic uncertainty – we’re carefully managing the trust’s finances and focusing on ensuring we can maintain all essential work until we get through this national crisis.