Will Chapman wrote:
>>
>> But nevertheless there are serious questions to be asked among ourselves
>> about why this situation has come about, and for better or worse some of
>> these are not answered by saying simply that DEFRA cut the cash, didn't it,
>> that explains everything. Well, no, it doesn't. Maybe an organisation so
>> committed to a policy of self sufficiency might have been better realising
>> that it was never actually going to BE self sufficient, and that the public
>> grants on which it depends needed defending more robustly before they were
>> cut, not just afterwards.
>>
But shirley that implies that it was BW that decided it should become
self-sufficient? Weren't they obliged to take on that role? That's a
question not a statement as I don't know the answer, just had the
impression that was how it began.
Either way, no organisation can be come self-sufficient overnight
without time and adequate funding, And, here I do speak with some
knowledge having runs several sizable companies myself, certainly
not under circumstances where agreed budgets are slashed without
warning.
I have my disagreements with BW policy on a number of issues but
I am impressed with the way they have handled their property
portfolio and implemented innovative schemes like Cable TV under the
towpaths and using the canals to shift water for profit from one
part of the country to another. What I'd like to see is a truly
independent and self sufficient BW that we can lobby without the
fear that whatever we negotiate might be never implemented because
of budget cuts. And in this regard, note that Defra are threatening
to impose cuts year upon year for the next 3-5 years. How a company
can get fully self-sufficient under those circumstances escapes me.
Cheers
Will Chapman
Save Our Canals first - argue the details later
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/canals-list/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/canals-list/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
