Bembridge, on the Isle of Wight, thought to be the first harbour to be subject to a public enquiry under Section 31 of the 1964 Harbours Act, comes under the spotlight, writes Robin Powell, Chairman of the Bembridge Harbour Users Group.
In November of 2004 Bembridge Harbour Improvements Company Ltd announced their intention to impose harbour dues of £100 per boat on moorings in Bembridge Harbour, apart from boats on Harbour Company moorings and pontoon berths, which, they stated already included harbour dues. Harbour dues at this level represented an increase of almost double the annual rent they were then charging for mooring sites in the Harbour.
This was a cause of great concern to many people and an association (originally called the Bembridge Harbour Mooring Providers Association) was formed to express concerns to the Harbour Company about the significant increase in the cost of keeping a boat in Bembridge and the way it was planing to introduce these new dues.
Following the Harbour Company’s eventual introduction of harbour dues in 2006, the original association was renamed the Bembridge Harbour Users Group (BHUG) and was later adopted as a sub-committee of the Bembridge and St Helens Harbour Association (BASHHA).
An appeal under Section 31 of the 1964 Harbours Act was subsequently submitted in 2006 to the Department for Transport (DfT) against the level of the harbour dues. Not because harbour dues were being imposed, indeed the 1964 Harbour Act makes it clear that the Harbour Company is entitled to levy them once the correct procedures have been carried out, but because most people considered the level of them to be excessively high. It is a sad fact that several boat owners moved their boats to other harbours to avoid paying the increased charges.
In the absence of a decision by the DfT on this original appeal, three further appeals were submitted covering 2007, 2008, and 2009. After putting a lot of effort into submitting these appeals the DfT has at last decided that a public enquiry should be held to investigate the situation. BHUG expects that this enquiry, which may well last for two weeks, will be held in Bembridge in January 2010 although the precise date has yet to be finally confirmed.
Although no audited Harbour Company accounts covering the period from 2006 to date have ever been made available, there is no doubt that a considerable number of boat owners have paid harbour dues for both moorings and pontoon berths. It is obviously impossible to predict the outcome of the enquiry but if the appeals are successful then it is probable that the Harbour Company will have to refund such owners with part or all of the dues they have paid.