Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of cuts in funding to the Canal and River Trust on (1) its ability to maintain and repair the waterway network, (2) the number of resulting canal closures, (3) the maintenance of canals, bridges, locks and other associated infrastructure affected by extreme weather events, and (4) the number of jobs that will be lost, both directly and indirectly, as a result of those funding cuts.

When the Canal and River Trust was set up in 2012 to replace British Waterways, the Government agreed to provide an annual grant over 15 years to provide a measure of financial stability while the Trust developed alternative income streams. This was on the clear agreement, set out in a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Defra and the Trust at the time, that the Trust would progressively reduce reliance on Government grant funding. During this 15-year period the total value of the grant payments will be around £740 million.

The Government carried out a comprehensive evidence-based review of the grant that recognised the progress made so far. Following this, and while there was no obligation to do so, the Government has agreed to provide the Trust with a further £400 million grant over ten years from 2027 to support their continued efforts towards that end and deliver a safe and resilient canal network. Both the current grant and the new grant from 2027 onwards are primarily to support the Trust’s infrastructure maintenance programme. However, it is an operational matter for the Trust to determine the allocation of funding within their maintenance programme, and Ministers do not have a role in that.

The Government has discussed with the Trust its ability to increase income from other sources, such as rental returns from a property portfolio endowed by Government in 2012 and currently valued at over £1 billion. The Government believes that the Trust will be able to leverage other sources of income to ensure canals and towpaths remain open.