A 26-strong campaign flotilla gathered on the Thames outside the Palace of Westminster on Wednesday to send a message to government to fund Britain’s canals.
Led by campaign group Fund Britain’s Waterways (FBW), the flotilla has travelled from Doncaster since late March in a bold effort to draw much-needed attention to the decline of the country’s inland waterways.
They are calling on the government to make adequate investment for failing infrastructure and safeguard the future of the 5,000-mile canal network.
Association of Waterways Cruising Clubs chair and leader of the flotilla Hazel Owen said: “Not even broken locks or pollution from a fire closing the Maida Hill Tunnel stood in the way of the 26 boats representing thousands of FBW members getting our message across to the government that adequate funding is required to save our canals for future generations”.
Sounding horns of the colourful canal boats caught the attention of MPs gathered on the Palace’s terrace ahead of Prime Minister’s questions.
Parliamentarians also joined representatives from the campaign’s alliance of 160 organisations, as crowds of supporters cheered the flotilla from Westminster Bridge.
FBW brings together a wide range of organisations with the sole purpose of campaigning collectively for an increase in government funding to avert the decline of Britain’s waterways, and to promote awareness of the economic, environmental, and social well-being value they provide.
The Canal and River Trust (CRT), a member of FBW and the largest navigation authority in the UK, spent over £65million maintaining aged infrastructure in 2023/24.
It inherited its 2000-mile network of waterways in 2012 after forming through the dissolution of public corporation British Waterways.
The CRT receives annual government support through a 2012 agreement with Defra, but this grant, totalling £52.6million in 2024, has declined in real terms since the previous inflation linking ended in 2021/22,
The charity claimed that cost it £23million last year.
In 2023, the Conservatives proposed to extend financial support to the CRT for an additional decade beyond the initial expiry date of 2027.
However, this extension reduced funding to only over £400million for the ten-year period, while pushing the CRT to increase income from alternative sources and reduce their reliance on taxpayer funding as an independent charity.
The CRT claimed this funding reduction will have a deleterious effect given the rising costs involved with maintaining the inherited 250-year-old infrastructure and compounded by the impact of more frequent drought and extreme storms brought by climate change.
FBW urged recognition of the importance of Britain’s inland waterways as part of the national infrastructure with environmental, leisure, heritage, and commercial freight value.
The group further called for an urgent review of canal funding in view of the already-deteriorating condition.
A long trip back to Doncaster awaits the FBW flotilla, which will cross The Wash to the Anglian waterways and arrive back in August, 20 weeks after setting off.
Those interested can follow the remainder of the flotilla’s journey by joining the Facebook group Fund Britain’s Waterways – Cruises for 2025.
Featured image: Liz Rayner
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