Thanks for the replies all, although I would like a mooring at some point in the future, it is not a priority at the moment & I would still like to purchase the house regardless.
My main concern is that I am paying what I see as a premium (in the purchase price) to have the canal at the end of the garden, and I would like to make use of the land immediately adjacent to the canal (garden furniture, perhaps some decking etc). Therefore I would not want CART coming along & fencing off that portion of land, if I refused to pay them an amount of money of their choosing.