DaveG

Whilst the "Caravan Tax" reduction is very welcome news for 7,000 workers in East Yorkshire, the U-turn hasn't been driven by the desire to protect jobs and business but as a result of pressure from wealthy land-owning site owners, including one very vocal Tory Party Constituency chairwoman in Suffolk who threatened to take her membership elsewhere as the tax would, allegedly, bankrupt her

I generally find Car Boot sales to be a waste of time. Been to loads but never yet managed to get one for a 1982 Saab 900.

I think it's far too early to get excited - the Met Office reported yesterday that March was the driest for 29 years so a few days rain isn't going to make a huge difference. Here in the East Midlands it has been heavy showers rather than persistent rain and, whilst the Nene is up a bit, rivers act as funnels and this is as much to do with the EA getting the water out to sea as quickly as possible. Dig down an inch or so and the ground is pretty compacted still which means the water runs off rather than being absorbed down to the water table.

Probably explains why parts of the Nene seem so low - the downstream floating pontoon at Thrapston lock has been sitting on the bottom for over a week now. We drove up to the coast through the Lincolnshire fens yesterday and many of the "drains" are completely empty.

I don't know if it's worth mentioning, but any business generating it's own electricity and then selling it on to it's customers has to have an Ofgem licence and conform to a whole raft of regulations to do so.

We went up to Rutland Water at the weekend and there are places where the water has retreated more than 50 metres from the bank. The small river which runs through our village and on into the Nene is normally about 3-4ft deep at this time of year - it's about 3 inches at the moment and comes just over the dog's paws! Even the snow melt hasn't changed anything. I really don't think it bodes well for the spring and summer once boats start moving in quantity again as I suspect there will be very early-season closures and restrictions....and a lot of grumpy boaters! Strange times, indeed.

The local news has just reported that rivers and reservoirs in the region are at their lowest since 1921 = even the Welney Wetlands risk being renamed the "Drylands"! The visitor mooring on the Nene at Thrapston Bridge appears to be about two feet lower than is normal even in summer.

My link

Just to add - I wrote to this chap this morning at his work e-mail address asking what he is seeking to achieve and offering to provide whatever he needs but haven't received a reply as yet - hopefully something will turn up tomorrow.

Hi. Hope all is well at Billing - the Nene seems incredibly low for the time of year, especially around Thrapston and Oundle. Probably going to put the boat up for sale after Easter and call it a day, we think, as the "hassle" element is starting to overtake the "fun" these days.

Danny1 - this is twice now you've reposted my comment of 28th Sept but with no related comment of your own. I'm at a bit of a loss as to why.

29th December: one (pontoon) has been floated out and positioned. (Andichan) posted today: When I passed last week three pontoons had been put in place (Adam1uk) So, that's about one a week, and with another 42 (by my count) to go the pontoons should be in by about the 12th November. These are, of course, the same pontoons that we were promised in September would all be installed that month. Last year's convenient bad weather excuse can't be blamed this year, either. Then there's the construction of the Bar/Restaurant, the cafe, the chandlery, the two "boutiques", the workshops, the laundry, the showers, lift-out etc etc. to be done, all far bigger and more expensive projects than the pontoons. So, at this rate, I would guess another two years at least before the "marina" represents anything like the specification that was being advertised and charged for as "fully open" back at the end of July. And it's now 16 months since it was originally claimed it would be open and nearly two years since they started taking money from people on this pretext.. 'not finding it easy' - I know how they feel!

Unfortunately, I don't think the good burghers of Cambridge will so much as notice the absence of the boaters pound which, in the great scheme of things, probably barely constitutes a gnat's whisker. And, as other posters have pointed out, it is invariably difficult to get a mooring on the 48 hour section as it's usually clogged with overstayers - I visit Cambridge quite regularly by car and the same boats appear to be permanent fixtures along the park and in front of the pub. A couple of years back, for instance, a large Dutch barge (complete with Dutch flag) was moored on the 48-hour mooring next to the sanitary station from Easter right the way through to September. It's a great shame because Cambridge really is one of the "jewels in the crown" on the network. I don't know how Fox boats at March will be affected as it is one of the top destinations for hireboats so I guess they will either have to take a hit on the fee or somehow try and pass it on to their clients which, in the current environment, may be difficult. The rowing fraternity are also up in arms about the licence increases so it's not something aimed at narrowboats.

From what I have been able to dig up, this is a project that was set up in October 2007, with Libby Purves as "frontperson", seeking charitable donations of £80m for a "University of the Oceans". There is no mention in the original specification of this being a "Royal" vessel - it would seem that this has just been added in the last month as the original project completely stalled. There is also no commitment that this vessel will even be built here as it is doubtful the appropriate skills exist. Apparently the boat will also take at least three years to build from the date of commissioning by which point the queen will be at least 88 years old. One has to question the wisdom of taking an aged couple out on a boat which will sail on a constant heel. Somehow this all has a bit of a privileged whiff about it for which the taxpayer will end up paying for the maintenance, crew and security on an ongoing basis. My link

BBC Breakfast will be running a piece between 8.30 and 9.00 about CART (that's what they called it) recruiting volunteer lock keepers on the K & A.

Very sad to read this and it does bring home the fact that you never know what's round the corner. When you hear stories of accidents people have had at work and the difficulties they have faced in getting them addressed, it is somewhat dispiriting to then hear our Prime Minister proclaiming he intends to take on the "health and safety monster" and describe safety regulation as "red tape". According to the government's own figures, There were more than 500 workplace deaths through accident and 603,000 workplace injuries in 2010. I lived in France for 17 years, Kiki, so PM me if there's anything you might like to know about.

Nina, you are rather missing something here which leads me to believe you either haven't actually read the whole thread or, for some reason, have chosen to ignore the salient points. From July until November, Barby Moorings Ltd were advertising on their website and in half page spreads in the boating press (Waterways World, Towpath Talk, Canal Boat etc) that the marina was fully open and that all the facilities were in place. . If you re-read my (admittedly long) post above, together with those from other aggrieved boaters, you will see that it was only due to the efforts of those who had lost money that the ASA ordered these adverts to be withdrawn and the website to be amended. People were misled because the advertising and the statements made by the owners were completely false. It is only because of these ASA judgements that Barby Moorings have been legally compelled to insert the words "will offer" onto their website, though you will notice that they are still advertising fully serviced pontoons even though they don't exist. Your comments and opinions are welcome but, as they are currently phrased, seem somewhat wide of the mark when it comes to facts.

Interesting to see two such positive postings, though the only real change to the site in the last four months that I can ascertain from them is that one pontoon has finally been floated into position. (The pump-out was, allegedly, installed and operational before the marina opened in July). Odd, then, that the company website still advertises 91 pontoon and 17 bankside "premium moorings" as being already built, along with a site plan dated May detailing each one. Is it fair to now assume the Digital TV and LAN Broadband which are still being advertised as supplied to every boat are now actually installed and available to every boat? Is the bar and restaurant I, and others, were assured would be built and operational by Christmas now open for business? Is the previously advertised hi-tech security system now in place or is site access still via the Barby Lane gate over half a mile away from the ungated "marina" entrance down a badly made up isolated track shared with all the other surrounding landowners and, in fact, anyone else who chooses to use it? Whilst the gate is occasionally padlocked, there is no register of who actually has keys or how many copies have been made. What is the lead time on completion of the other outstanding facilities (which were, up until November, being advertised as operational) - Cafe, Laundrette, Toilet, Showers, Shop, two retail units, workshops, repairs, liftout, blacking - which necessitated two ASA judgements before Barby Moorings Ltd were forced to admit they didn't exist? Any empathy I had for the "clan McMaster" evaporated in September when, having been systematically and deliberately lied to (and, to be fair, fallen for it) over the previous 11 months regarding progress I then received a demand for more money on top of the £400 deposit I had already paid for a pontoon mooring and facilities which, quite simply, did not exist. Having been allocated a "temporary" substitute my boat was then relocated (and damaged!) the moment I went home and the mooring given to someone else....who has since also been evicted!! Whilst some may have been able to get a refund after a struggle, others still haven't had anything. Some of us have also been threatened in various ways by the "clan McMaster". A number of us have had to initiate court action against Barby Moorings Ltd to return these funds and, in my case, also for damage to my boat whilst in the "marina" (see para below). It is, no doubt, these unreturned funds which have financed the piecemeal work which has continued at the site. So, a couple of cautionary tales. As I said above, I left my boat on a "bankside" mooring which was allocated to me in lieu of the designated pontoon I had reserved which wasn't (and still isn't) built. I am not a liveaboard therefore it is essential I can trust the marina where I keep my boat to take good care of it whilst I am not there - I do not think this is an unreasonable expectation given the fees charged. However, when I left my boat it was actually aground and it was evident the basin excavation was inadequate - my boat draws around 2'3", so it's not what you would call "out of the ordinary". My boat was then moved at least twice - the first time was when I noticed a photo on their website showing another boat was now on the mooring I had been allocated and mine was now just rafted to it with the shorepower cable just chucked in the water. Then, when we went to move the boat to its new marina (having been told to remove it from Barby after raising the lack of facilities issue) we found it had been moved again - as it turned out to the far end of the site. When we asked Ms Leede why, when, by whom and to where the boat had been moved she claimed to have no idea. Not very encouraging from someone who lives and works on site and is a co-Director of the business, I would suggest. Once we had located our boat (stern-on to some incomplete piling with a trench in front of it) the reason for her reticence became clear - the floor of the interior was strewn with every last thing that wasn't bolted down, including the LCD TV/DVD player (which by some miracle still works!), the eco-fan, glasses, crockery and ornaments , many of which were smashed leaving broken glass and china all over the floor. Furthermore, the bath and the engine bay were half full of dirty water. Evidently, as they were unable to gain access and consequently couldn't start the engine, to free the boat from being aground "clan McMaster" had first tipped the boat then "bounced" it until it was free. Consequently, the drain holes from the bath and the engine had both been submerged and water run back in. Judging by the amount in the bath, several gallons, this had gone on for some time. In addition, every last eyelet and tie-back on the cratch cover had been ripped through the material which, in a clumsy effort to disguise it, had then been fixed back to the hull with several yards of black adhesive tape. This is not how a professional or even half-competent outfit would carry on, and it is obvious negligence does not bother them. So, as well as losing my deposit, having to find another mooring and take time out to move the boat there, I have had about £700 of damage done to my boat. The fate of this now rests with the County Court. A note of caution to the liveaboard community there - whilst they may be turning a blind eye and claiming you "just need to walk your dog every three days", I'm sure you all know that McMaster has altered the Terms and Conditions to state, quite specifically: "No Vessel within the Marina or Premises is to be used as a primary residence. The Owner, his crew, members of his family and/or any other person shall not stay on any boat or other vessel for a period in excess of 72 hours in any seven day period" This is exactly in line with the express conditions under which planning consent was given. Good or bad, the planning authority will visit Barby Moorings unannounced to check the marina has been constructed in line with the consent in exactly the same way they visit any other major development. Given his track record of dealing with other customers, I would not be under any illusion that McMaster will try and protect your tenancy, rather he is more likely to hide behind his Ts & Cs and you may well join the ever-growing list of evictees. He is not the type to fall on his sword to protect anyone. I would also be nervous that if the day ever did come when he lets all 108 berths to leisure boaters, liveaboards may well no longer be welcome. Be sure you are not simply providing an interim income until the mess is sorted out or the planning authorities catch on. If it were me, and given that there are virtually no residential moorings available in the area, I would want something in writing protecting my tenancy, not least as if you read back through this thread you will see some liveaboards have been evicted at an hours notice. Andichan - yes, I agree there was a friendly community there and I also met some nice people. Sadly, many of these have since been evicted and/or have lost a substantial sum of money. Those who have posted here are just a minority. I was also aware they were also very fearful. Some were worried that they had been misled over the "residential" status of the marina, others simply afraid of being the next "victim". On the day we left my partner was verbally abused and threatened but, unfortunately, the one liveaboard witness (a genuinely nice person) said they couldn't get involved as they "couldn't afford to get thrown out and go anywhere else". A very sad state of affairs and no one should have to live in fear of their "landlord", don't you think? I hope the positive things you wish for do materialize soon as they are currently 16 months overdue!! Given the track record of the man, though, you're very brave posting your boat name on here given that you've called their £5,500 per year bankside moorings "a stupid design"! Not sure about it becoming "one of the premier marinas in the country", though - even if completed, it won't offer anything different to many other marinas, you can't really argue it's in a particularly attractive setting, and it's not exactly quiet given that one boundary of the site is the M45! Nina Barby Moorings knew in June 2010 they did not have sufficient funding for this project before the first sod was even cut. Rather than be honest and up front, they then embarked on a 17 month exercise in mis-selling, unkept commitments and, worst of all, taking money off genuine boaters against claims and promises they knew would never be met. In effect, they planned to use business cashflow and not capital to finance the project which could only be obtained by taking deposits for moorings which didn't exist. Do you think this catalogue of deceit would be fair under any circumstances? The only thing that has since stopped them making these false claims is the action of boaters and the Advertising Standards Agency, not any newfound conscience by the "clan McMaster". As late as June this year they took out a newspaper article (Northampton Chronicle & Echo) calling themselves a "£1 million marina". I find your use of the word "loyal" interesting, too - I think you will find the liveaboards' "loyalty" is more a case of them not having anywhere else to go in the area unless they can meet the "continuous cruiser" guidelines. Yes, it was a tough year for raising finance, but it was a bloody sight tougher for the poor sods who parted with their money to this company, not to mention the distress and worry caused to decent people by this whole sorry saga. Does it not occur to anyone that the reason for the high number of evictions might just be due to the Company having (according to their own claims) sold 100 moorings when only 17 were available and then, having announced to the world that they were fully open, realising they had 100 boats (£40,000 worth of deposits) all heading in their direction and nowhere to put them?? Pretty well all the work done so far at Barby has been on a "DIY" basis, most of it, apparently, by Ms Leede with her own JCB and occasionally helped by a couple of other chaps and McMaster Junior. One now has to wonder exactly when and how the remainder of the work, which will also consume the biggest chunk of finance, will take place. Barby has now reached a point where "DIY" will no longer suffice as the works ahead of them are all major construction and building projects which will have to conform to Building and Health and Safety regulations as well as the specifications laid out in the planning consent. From my own point of view, all they had to do was to be honest with us. I rather doubt now that the leopard has changed it's spots.

Damn and blast!! Just realised we forgot the chipolatas!!! Wishing everyone a good Christmas!! Dave

Well, for example, Dominic Cummings, aide to Michael Gove at the DfE, issued the following in response to various requests to the DfE regarding the appointment of New Schools Network, registered as a charity, and run by former Gove employee Rachel Wolf, regarding their selection as "advisors", the donation to the charity by the DfE of £1m of taxpayer money, and who their other donors are/were and whether they stand to benefit financially from the establishment of free schools.: “NSN is not giving out to you, the media or anybody else any figure on ‘expressions of interest’ for PQs, FOIs or anything else. Further, NSN has not, is not, and will never answer a single FOI request made to us concerning anything at all.” Additionally, further FOI requests for details of the NSN bid were only complied with after a 70 day delay and even then in heavily redacted form. This does lead us somewhat off topic so if the mods want to move the Q and A elsewhere that's fine.

Thanks - I hadn't seen this document. Not before time. I will be interested to see how several outstanding requests are now managed.