*By Jasper Copping, Sunday Telegraph* (by way of the IWA)
A multi-million pound project to reopen 40 miles of canals connecting the eastern and western waterways has been thrown into doubt by a funding crisis at British Waterways. The Cotswold Canals allowed boats to navigate from the River Severn across to the Thames until they were closed last century. They have since been filled in along much of their length and have been described as the last "missing link" of the network. The renovation was unveiled last year. Preparatory work had begun, with major construction set to start later this year. Now British Waterways (BW) says it can no longer go ahead because of cuts made to its budget by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). The corporation, lead partner of the Cotswold Canals Partnership, had secured almost £18 million towards the £24 million first phase, which would have seen six miles of the waterway open by 2010. The Heritage Lottery Fund pledged £11.9 million, and the South West of England Regional Development Agency was providing £6 million. BW has been unable to secure more cash from local authorities in areas alongside the canal and senior managers say they cannot support the rest of the costs. Eugene Baston, from BW, said: "We have to be prudent and continue to improve the existing network." Defra has cut funding to try to make good the deficit left by the mishandling of revamped farm subsidy payments. Last year's £55 million grant to the canals was £7 million less than expected, and it is likely to be slashed by another £7 million this year. As a result, BW cut spending on infrastructure and made 180 people redundant. Last month, it emerged that it may have to be privatised and the 2,200-mile canal network split up. Charlotte Atkins, Labour MP for Staffordshire Moorlands, who last week lodged an Early Day Motion fighting privatisation proposals, said: "Expanding the network is central to British Waterways' role and there is a justifiable public element to that. It's why it needs to continue to get public money." The project involves renovating the Stroudwater Navigation and the Thames and Severn Canals. The Stroudwater Navigation ran through Gloucestershire, from Sharpness, near the Severn, to Stroud. It was opened in 1779 and closed in 1954. The Thames and Severn opened in 1789 and continued from Stroud to the Wiltshire village of Inglesham, on the Thames, allowing boats to pass all the way through to London and to gain access to other canals. It closed in 1933. The filled-in stretches would be re-dug in a project that would conserve 30 historic structures, including bridges and locks, and protect rare species such as bats, water vole and crayfish. The aim was to attract up to 215,000 extra visitors and create 600 jobs by 2014, along with a 10-mile pedestrian trail. A spokesman for Defra said: "It is for the [British Waterways] board to prioritise its activities in the light of competing demands for available resources." -- Martin E Phillips http://www.g4cio.demon.co.uk Homebrewing, black pudding, boats, morris dancing, ham radio and more! The Gloucester-Sharpness canal web page http://www.glos-sharpness.org.uk
