That the petitioners would prefer the inhabitants of some boats moored on the River Avon in Mead Lane to refrain from staying for long periods of time.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your Honourable House ask Her Majesty’s Government to consider the opinions of local residents and other boat owners in this regard.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray, & c.—[Presented by Mr Jacob Rees-Mogg, Official Report, 11 January 2017; Vol. 619, c. 429.]
[P002002]
Observations from the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Andrea Leadsom):
The Government would like to thank the petitioners for raising the issue of mooring along the River Avon, Mead Lane, Saltford.
The Government do not have responsibility for operational matters, including mooring, on the waterways as this usually sits with either individual navigation authorities who have a duty to manage and operate their waterways; or riparian landowners, who may own the banks or the bed of the river.
For the stretch of the River Avon at Mead Lane, Saltford, the Canal & River Trust (the Trust), an independent charity established in July 2012 to replace British Waterways in England and Wales, is the navigation authority. This means that any vessel on the river would therefore require a boat licence from the trust. However, the trust does not own the banks or the bed of the river in this location, and as such, they do not control the mooring of boats along the side of the river adjacent to Mead Lane, unless it obstructs navigation in any way. The control of long-term moorings is likely to be with the riparian landowners on that side of the river and therefore a matter for them.