I am writing on behalf of all those with continuous cruiser licences who are being moved on by the 'jobs worth' enforcement officers after they have outstayed their time, Cecile Bower explains.
Looking out of our windows this morning [Monday] and even over most of the past weeks the wind is just about at gale force and it is raining. Never mind the latter, us all year round boaters can handle that, but the scale of the wind is dangerous.
It is bad enough attempting to cruise on canals and moor at locks single handed when a narrowboat is being blown away by high winds, but even more dangerous on rivers where the weir beckons. In these conditions the enforcement officers should use a bit of common sense, realising it really is dangerous to cruise in a narrowboat.
I must add, I certainly do not include all enforcement officers; one during the last gale told me to stay put whilst it eased, though 'my time was up', and appreciated a hot cup of tea for his sensible approach!