Mr. John Dolan:

We thank the committee for its invitation to discuss part two of the Bill, which deals with the canals and the Barrow navigation.

The Inland Waterways Association of Ireland, IWAI, is a voluntary body with 23 branches across the island of Ireland representing over 3,000 waterways enthusiasts. The IWAI was founded in 1954 in response to plans to build low bridges over the Shannon. The successful campaign ensured this navigation could be developed into the major domestic and international tourism and recreational attraction that it is today. In the 1960s the IWAI campaigned to prevent the Grand Canal in Dublin from being turned into sewerage infrastructure, and now over 50 years later its is campaigning again to save the canals and Barrow in terms of their navigation potential.

The IWAI is involved in restoration on the Boyne and Lagan navigations, the Ulster Canal, Ram's Island and Lough Corrib. We have a strategic alliance project with the RNLI on Lough Ree. We hold over 200 events annually that foster strong relationships with waterways communities each year. In 2018 we will jointly host the World Canals Conference in Athlone with Waterways Ireland.

The IWAI regrettably advises that the proposed Heritage Bill as it pertains to the canals does not put user requirements, local communities or tourism at the centre of the regulations. It is viewed as disproportionate and heavy handed legislation that will enable similarly onerous by-laws. An important aspect here is to understand that the canals and Barrow navigation are different from other Irish waterways in two key areas. Unlike the other navigations, there are no private mooring provisions or service providers on the canals. Waterways Ireland are a monopoly. Secondly, the canals are not wide open expanses of water offering easy and multiple navigation options. They are effectively linear waterways with issues and challenges such as low water levels, weed issues, obstructions underwater, manually operated locks, etc. Larger boats, including the traditional vessels the canals were built for, can have to travel for over a day to find an area wide enough to turn around in. Thus, travel on the canals tend to involve lengthy tours of duty, so to speak, rather than short cruises from a home-base marina. This travel is typically done on weekends and over a period of weeks and months. The green and silver route promoted by IWAI Dublin demonstrates this very well, promoting travel through Dublin via the Royal and Grand Canal and the Barrow and River Shannon, although this struggles due to the fact that a bridge that blocks the canal navigation in Dublin is only raised a couple of times each year. The proposals in the Heritage Bill are not compatible with current boating practices on the canals. They more reflective of boating practices on open waterways.

Why do boaters travel the canals? The Royal and Grand canals and Barrow navigation waterways are a magnificent marriage of nature with early engineering feats. They link the north, south, east and west of all the navigations across Ireland, including the Shannon, the Erne, the Liffey, the Suir and the Nore, all accessible by boat through the canals and Barrow. They have the potential to attract domestic and international boating visitors who will relish the tranquil opportunity of slow tourism, cruising at walking pace as people move faster than the canal boats on the system, while experiencing the associated industrial heritage, wooded valleys, peat lands, small villages and towns that have interdependence with the canals and our capital city. There is also unfortunately the adventure in between where boaters at some locations can be targeted by antisocial behaviour or delayed for hours trying to remove obstructions from the canal or from the propellers on the boat. It’s not all plain sailing.

The main IWAI areas of concern relate to the new complicated licensing, rather than the simple permitting system that has operated for decades, which is customer friendly, easy to use and understand and fit for purpose; adequate provisions so that boats of dimensions for which the canals were built to accommodate are protected and can continue to use the canals into the future; appropriate charging structures that match the provision of services available; the fixed payment notices and fines with no independent appeal mechanism other than the courts that will discourage use of the canals and are not in place on any other inland waterways; the proposed provision and powers of authorised officers; and the legislation that will facilitate the introduction of a complete different set of rules, charges, regulations and fines that are not in place on the adjoining waterways. The result will be that canals users will simply move to these waterways which will be a further blow to an already fragile future of navigations on the canals.

In 2012, Waterways Ireland, the navigation authority, who have no corporate governance structure, attempted to introduce new by-laws without any public pre-consultation. The IWAI and over 2,000 individuals from waterway communities and international waterways organisations responded within the 21 day consultation period expressing huge concerns. One of these concerns identified by the IWAI was that the proposed by-laws lacked legal authority. This was subsequently accepted by the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, based on advice of the Attorney General. Subsequently the canal aspect of this Heritage Bill was introduced in January 2016, again without any pre-consultations or any notice to the IWAI or canal communities. At high levels meetings between Waterways Ireland and the IWAI it has been made clear that Waterways Ireland wish to immediately reintroduce the proposed 2012 by-laws and increase charges to the maximum level to attract private marina operators onto the canal. This approach of putting the cart before the horse will finish the canals, as due to their linear nature they do not represent an attractive private investment opportunity compared to other, more expansive waterways. Why try to enforce excessive charges and licence agreements on only one group of customers for use of a struggling piece of infrastructure, rather than improve the service, improve the product, restore confidence in the product, increase the boats using it and entice private investment that way?

We have included in our submission a copy of the proposed Waterways Ireland annual canal permit licence agreement. This runs to nine pages, requires four different signatures, witnesses and seals of office and is we believe an onerous and disproportionate burden on our citizens at a time when the political agenda is all about administrative burden reduction. This should remain a simple permit that is the equivalent of a road tax certificate. Instead it is a complex legal document which will require boat owners to seek legal advice. Licenses are not in place on any other waterway, nor in use in private marinas or local authority marinas where annual mooring is provided. The IWAI is not against contributing to the canals financially. We have, over the past two years, sought to engage with Waterways Ireland regarding new permitting and charges in advance of any updating of by-laws. The IWAI offered agreement to a new increased pricing structure proposed by Waterways Ireland if it was based on a simple permitting system without complex licences. Our offer was rejected and we were told the matter was exhausted. We still await a reply as to what protection and advantages the new and highly legalistic licence system gives Waterways Ireland compared to the traditional, user-friendly permit system where one agrees to abide by published terms and conditions. Regardless of the size of any increase in charges to boaters, the income received by Waterways Ireland from these license charges will be very, very small compared to its annual budget. It will represent 0.25% of its income.

The canals and Barrow navigation are an important part of our social infrastructure, just like Phoenix Park, other national parks or St. Stephen's Green. None of these are expected to pay their way. Citizens and visitors avail of them freely, as do all recreational users of the canals, except for boaters. Of the over two dozen different user groups on the canals only the social boaters are being targeted with complicated licensing agreements and charges. The IWAI accepts that there are issues arising in less than a handful of places primarily due to location, and these do need addressing. The three navigations in question total 336 km. The length of waterway affected by the few areas with concerns is a couple of kilometres; less than 1%. It is important that legislation for by-laws that will be detrimental to 99% are not introduced to address issues arising in less than 1% of the waterways. The legislation should enable by-laws to vary from location to location on the canals.

Some may view aspects of Part 2 of the Bill on their own as reasonable but they impose a significant burden and risk collectively with no evidence presented as to what risk analysis has been done in relation to these proposals or why only one user group is being targeted for payment.

The canal built initially for boats have many different users today. The proposed greenways alongside will be great but a key attraction of the canals is the boats that use them, both modern and heritage canal boats and barges. They act as a magnet to visitors who love to walk alongside and admire them and chat to the crews. Irish boaters, local communities and visitors have helped to keep these navigations active and open. It is time now to expose and develop them for national and international tourism with appropriate promotion, management and community engagement. They can be a vibrant recreational resource for the 21st century linking slow tourism with invaluable industrial, archaeological and environmental legacies. They can be a world-class branded waterways route, similar to the lakes of Killarney, the Norfolk Broads, the Four Counties Ring in England and the lakes of Canada.

Some 61 different amendments were tabled on the Heritage Bill 2016 [Seanad] during the Committee Stage debate in Seanad Éireann by numerous party and Independent Senators. This committee has an ideal opportunity for new partnership politics to be demonstrated by proposing an amendment for the withdrawal of the Part 2, the section of the Bill entitled Canals. from the Bill to facilitate the introduction of a fit for purpose, dedicated canal Act with proper pre legislative consultation. Over regulation and higher charges are not the answer to developing these waterways. They deserve proper legislation that will put user requirements, local communities and tourism at the centre of the regulations.

It would ironic if this Heritage Bill, rather than protecting the future of the Grand and Royal canals and Barrow navigation enables legislation for by-laws that end up creating waterways with no boats on them. The IWAI thank members for their attention.