A very Merry Christmas to all my followers.
Remember there is always somebody worse off than yourself.
Take a few minutes to listen to this program.
Breadlines and Tinsel http://bbc.in/ux8R7B
About Me
- Dave Winter
- At the moment I am caring full time for a family member and when the time comes I will be selling up and living on a narrowboat.I enjoy reading,especially about those living on narrowboats and their daily lives.The tug Nb Resolute in the above picture is NOT mine but is owned by Dave Moore and is something I would aspire to own one day although I am going to look at many boats before I make a decision on the style and interior.Tugs are looking good at the moment but have yet to look around one. My interest in narrowboats started some 47 years ago. As a lad I cycled from Luton to bridge 111 on the G.U.by the Globe to fish and watch the Morton and Clayton boats go by,full of coal with a family on board and always wondered how they kept their balance on the planks that ran above the coal and why the the dogs didnt jump in the canal.That fascination has stayed with me so when I am able I will be there on my narrowboat joining in the great community of boat owners. Find me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/brassiclint or listen to my music site.Use earphones or earplugs depending on your musical taste :) http://blip.fm/Dave_Winter
Sunday, 25 December 2011
Friday, 16 December 2011
LOFT INSULATION
Today we had our loft insulation topped up to 300mm thickness and a great job the two lads did who work for the Energy Care Group Ltd taking less than 3/4 hr to complete. The insulation used was URSA 10 with two 100mm layers completed. See the link for details of the insulation. http://www.ursa-uk.co.uk/_files/URSA_10_Loft_Roll_1010_V3.pdf
See the before and after pictures. All we need now is to be able to afford to heat the whole house.
See the before and after pictures. All we need now is to be able to afford to heat the whole house.
Insulation before top up thickness added.
Insulation after 200mm thickness added
Thickness shows up around the trap door.
Insulation added on top of the trap door.
To finish the job off I will add an insulated board beneath the trap door to properly seal it off. The tiles have no under felt as it is an old house but many years ago I sealed the gaps between the tiles with under seal which successfully stopped the snow from blowing in.This also ensured that there was plenty of air circulation to prevent condensation.
Saturday, 10 December 2011
Transcript of reply by Richard Benyon MP regarding funding of the new Canal & River Trust
This letter was sent to Kelvin Hopkins my local MP by Richard Benyon MP who passed it onto me, dated 28/11/2011
Dear Kelvin,
Thank you for your letter of 14th November to the secretary of state enclosing a copy of an email from your constituent,Mr D.Winter of (my address), about the transfer of British Waterways into a charitable sector.I am replying as minister responsible for this policy area.
I can assure you that the government remains committed to a sustainable future for our inland waterways. This was demonstrated by our announcement in October 2010 that,subject to parliamentary approval, we would transfer the functions and assets of British Waterways in England and Wales from state into civil society. The transfer to the new Canal & River Trust (CRT) is expected to take place in April 2012.
This transfer will not only give users and communities more responsibility foe governance of the waterways, it will also open up new income streams and material public support at a time when there is considerable pressure on other sources of income. Potential sources of new revenue include fund raising activities, donations, charitable grants and legacies; in addition, the charity will be able to borrow against its property assets, and develop further its commercial activities. Charitable status will also increase volunteering, enhance local partnership working and generate a range of cost efficiencies.
The Government will give the new charity the best start it can afford. Government has already agreed to transfer a property portfolio (valued at about £460 million) and to give the CRT a long term funding agreement. The Government has provided a commitment to £39m per annum from 2012/13 to April 2022. The terms and conditions of the funding agreement are currently subject to negotiation between the Trustees of the charity and the Government. A long-term agreement will enable the Trustees to develop a long-term business plan.
You will appreciate that, until those negotiations are concluded, I am unable to indicate the final terms of Government funding for the charity. We will make further announcements in due course.
Richard Benyon.
Minister for Natural Environment and Fisheries
Dear Kelvin,
Thank you for your letter of 14th November to the secretary of state enclosing a copy of an email from your constituent,Mr D.Winter of (my address), about the transfer of British Waterways into a charitable sector.I am replying as minister responsible for this policy area.
I can assure you that the government remains committed to a sustainable future for our inland waterways. This was demonstrated by our announcement in October 2010 that,subject to parliamentary approval, we would transfer the functions and assets of British Waterways in England and Wales from state into civil society. The transfer to the new Canal & River Trust (CRT) is expected to take place in April 2012.
This transfer will not only give users and communities more responsibility foe governance of the waterways, it will also open up new income streams and material public support at a time when there is considerable pressure on other sources of income. Potential sources of new revenue include fund raising activities, donations, charitable grants and legacies; in addition, the charity will be able to borrow against its property assets, and develop further its commercial activities. Charitable status will also increase volunteering, enhance local partnership working and generate a range of cost efficiencies.
The Government will give the new charity the best start it can afford. Government has already agreed to transfer a property portfolio (valued at about £460 million) and to give the CRT a long term funding agreement. The Government has provided a commitment to £39m per annum from 2012/13 to April 2022. The terms and conditions of the funding agreement are currently subject to negotiation between the Trustees of the charity and the Government. A long-term agreement will enable the Trustees to develop a long-term business plan.
You will appreciate that, until those negotiations are concluded, I am unable to indicate the final terms of Government funding for the charity. We will make further announcements in due course.
Richard Benyon.
Minister for Natural Environment and Fisheries
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Transcript of letter sent to Secretary of State by my MP regarding funding of the new Canal & River Trust
After writing to my local MP Kelvin Hopkins outlining my concerns for the future funding of the new Canal & River Trust I received this reply from him which is a transcript of the letter he is sending to Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. When he receives a reply he will write to me again.
Dear Secretary of State,
I enclose a copy of a letter from a constituent, Mr David Winter of ( my address ) who is concerned about the transfer of British Waterways to charitable status.
Mr Winter is concerned that the projected funding for the new Canal and River Trust (CRT) will be insufficient over the ten year period of the initial contract. There is no allowance for inflation and according to British Waterway's own projections there will be a funding deficit of £20m which the CRT would inherit.
In addition, BW has a pension deficit of £65 million. Mr Winter maintains that there is a large dredging backlog requiring £8-12 million per year to stabilise as well as ensuring that drainage, navigation and environmental requirements are effectively maintained. In addition the rights of those who live on the canal are under threat of being reduced. I also believe that British Waterways or its successor body should not be exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act as there will continue to be a public interest in much of the work of the successor body.
Issues such as the sale or lease of lock-keepers cottages are also of concern, as there will be no professionals on site at locks to ensure their safe use.
I would be grateful for the points Mr Winter makes which are very worrying for the future of the waterways. I look forward to a reply to my letter in due course.
Yours sincerely,
Kelvin Hopkins MP
Dear Secretary of State,
I enclose a copy of a letter from a constituent, Mr David Winter of ( my address ) who is concerned about the transfer of British Waterways to charitable status.
Mr Winter is concerned that the projected funding for the new Canal and River Trust (CRT) will be insufficient over the ten year period of the initial contract. There is no allowance for inflation and according to British Waterway's own projections there will be a funding deficit of £20m which the CRT would inherit.
In addition, BW has a pension deficit of £65 million. Mr Winter maintains that there is a large dredging backlog requiring £8-12 million per year to stabilise as well as ensuring that drainage, navigation and environmental requirements are effectively maintained. In addition the rights of those who live on the canal are under threat of being reduced. I also believe that British Waterways or its successor body should not be exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act as there will continue to be a public interest in much of the work of the successor body.
Issues such as the sale or lease of lock-keepers cottages are also of concern, as there will be no professionals on site at locks to ensure their safe use.
I would be grateful for the points Mr Winter makes which are very worrying for the future of the waterways. I look forward to a reply to my letter in due course.
Yours sincerely,
Kelvin Hopkins MP
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
Man Posts Letters in Dog Poo Bin for Two Years.
Pensioner Alf Spence was in for a shock when he discovered that for the past two years he had not been posting his mail through a Royal Mail post box, but a council owned designated dog dirt box.
The myopic Word War II veteran, 91, from North Yorks had lodged a catalogue of complaints with the Post Office over his missing mail, but never did he think that his letters had never been properly posted.
The mistake was eventually pointed out to him by a passing dog walker who observed Mr Spence trying to post his three-year grandson’s birthday card into a dog poo bin located diagonally opposite the post box. She tapped him on the shoulder and asked what he was doing.
Mr Spence commented to the Sunday Sport: “I thought she was going to cry when I told her. She held my hand and pointed out that the postbox was on the other side of the road.
“I’ve not got the best eyesight these days but even so, the postbox and the dog dirt box are almost identical. They’re both red, the same shape and stuck on a post.
“I bet I’m not the only pensioner to get confused. The bloody council should never have put them so close together.”
Mr Spence has acknowledge that he owes Royal Mail an apology over his accusations, while North Yorkshire District Council admitted that they erected the dog waste bin in June 2009, coinciding with the timing that his letters mysteriously disappeared.
As yet, there is no word on whether anyone has experienced the reverse problem with the post box located on the other side of the road.
The myopic Word War II veteran, 91, from North Yorks had lodged a catalogue of complaints with the Post Office over his missing mail, but never did he think that his letters had never been properly posted.
The mistake was eventually pointed out to him by a passing dog walker who observed Mr Spence trying to post his three-year grandson’s birthday card into a dog poo bin located diagonally opposite the post box. She tapped him on the shoulder and asked what he was doing.
Mr Spence commented to the Sunday Sport: “I thought she was going to cry when I told her. She held my hand and pointed out that the postbox was on the other side of the road.
“I’ve not got the best eyesight these days but even so, the postbox and the dog dirt box are almost identical. They’re both red, the same shape and stuck on a post.
“I bet I’m not the only pensioner to get confused. The bloody council should never have put them so close together.”
Mr Spence has acknowledge that he owes Royal Mail an apology over his accusations, while North Yorkshire District Council admitted that they erected the dog waste bin in June 2009, coinciding with the timing that his letters mysteriously disappeared.
As yet, there is no word on whether anyone has experienced the reverse problem with the post box located on the other side of the road.
Thursday, 29 September 2011
Car Number Plate Thefts
It makes you wonder what is going on in this country when you have to fit tamper proof screws to your car number plate to prevent them being stolen to be used in crime.Beds Police are running a campaign to fit these screws for free ( http://t.co/4BDQWtO6 ) so today I went along to get mine fixed.
The Toyota has the rear number plate glued on so no problem there but when the officer above came to replace the two front screws it was found the threads were too large for his replacements so unfortunately I still have a number plate that's 'nickable'.
I will now contact Toyota to see if they can provide tamper proof screws as part of their service after all we pay enough.
Hedgehogs in Decline
There are 300,000 fewer hedgehogs in Britain than a decade ago,farming practices and larger fields are reducing their natural habitat and although there is an increase in traffic the sightings of hedgehog casualties has been in decline, which suggests that their numbers have reduced dramatically.To help in the effort to preserve their numbers I have constructed a hedgehog house,see the picture below.
The entrance is 15" in length and leads to a nesting box about 2' square covered in pond liner then earth to keep out the damp.I have seen a hedgehog in the garden on the odd occasion so I hope it makes use of my effort.
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