Friday 7 November 2014

A Poll Tax for the Inland Waterways (7)

A Poll Tax for the Inland Waterways

Governments of all colours have from time to time come up with various bits of stupid legislation, that has eventually created the pit for their own downfall. 
  • For Thatcher is was the Poll Tax. 
  • For Major it was Family Values. 
  • For Cameron it was Big Society. 
  • For the Railways it was the wrong kind of Snow. 
  • For the Canal and River Trust its the wrong kind of Trustee.

There has been chapter and verse written over the last decade and longer, highlighting the distrust that many hold for the way that the waterways are being managed. What has become plain to see with the 20:20 vision provided by a decade or more of hindsight. Is that the quango charged to manage the waterways, was ill equipped with the right kind of personnel for the job. I'm not talking about the skill set of the general staff. The finger of responsibility has to be pointed much higher up the command structure.

First Division

One has to question how a charity approaching the start of its third year of existence, now lies third in the league table of charities being investigated by the Charity Commission. The incidents that led up to the '38 degrees' petitions being signed by thousands of boaters and other waterways users. Should be sending out a message that is loud, clear and unequivocal to the trust and its trustees. This is not anecdotal evidence, this is not the whim of someone in a waterways partnership. This is a clear message from the public that the trustees have a serious problem to deal with.  

So where was the responsibility element?
Where was the oversight by the trustees?

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