Marvin Rees heckled by boaters over harbour fee hike

The mayor of Bristol was heckled in a public meeting after claiming some boat dwellers were “privileged” and “abusing the system”.

People living and working in Bristol harbour face huge fee increases from April, with warnings some could be unable to pay and made homeless.

Marvin Rees apologised to a packed public gallery in City Hall, during a full council meeting on Tuesday and promised to meet with boaters about the huge fee hike. But the cabinet also agreed to press ahead with the fee hike, and “consult” with people later.

The mayor said he could not guarantee that all the people currently living on the boats in the harbour, of which there are at least 100, would be able to get new residential permits. Boaters urged him to pause the fee increase and consult with them on reasonable changes.

David Taylor said: “A significant number of households may be made homeless. The mayor’s intentionally divisive language, calling boat dwellers immoral and a privileged few, was upsetting to many of us.

“No consultation about these increases has taken place. The operational review of the harbour has not been made public, this means the community cannot see the basis for the increase in charges.”

Ben Ewing added: “My wife and I are self-employed electricians, and we’ve worked in and around the harbour for years. I have a roof over my head and I provide for my family. I have been living on my boat for 14 years.

“I found out today from the mayor’s website that I’m ‘abusing the system’ and ‘damaging the city’s ability to manage the harbour for all, not for the privileged few’.

“Yesterday I was planning for my family’s future; today I’m vulnerable.”

Fees boaters must pay include for pontoons, operating ferries, using showers, lifting and swinging bridges, and much more. Many of these fees are set to massively increase from April, well above inflation. The council said the increase will help pay for upgrades to facilities around the harbour, which boaters said were in very poor condition.

Another criticism is a lack of transparency about the planned fee hike. The council said harbour fees had not properly been reviewed for 20 years, and it has spent years reviewing what they should be, benchmarking against other harbours, to come out with the new proposed charges. But this review has not been published and many questions remain.

Michael Burnell said: “The increase to our running costs is going to have a massive effect, to the point that I’m probably not going to be able to keep my boat any more. That includes taking older generations out on the water to local restaurants and cafes. It’s really disheartening to find out all of this at such a late notice.”

Sharman has lived on boat in the harbour for more than a decade and works for Bristol Ferry Boats – photo: Martin Booth

Mandy Sharman, chair of the Bristol Boaters Community Association, said: “How can the cabinet make an informed decision while disregarding the impact these proposals could have on people’s homes? Can you guarantee that the existing boat dwellers in the harbour will be able to get residential licences?”

Rachel Evans said: “You haven’t asked anybody in the harbour about how this will affect them. This is what the problem is: there’s been no communication. That’s why everyone is really angry. Which harbour did you look at? Were you comparing like for like? We have no facilities in Bristol, very little.”

The harbour fee hike is one part of the council’s plan to charge more for some public services, while also cutting budgets for those same services. The amount the council receives from Westminster has massively fallen since 2010, due to the government’s austerity measures, and the council has few powers to raise its own revenue.

Rees said: “We’re trying to better manage the harbour, but there’s no cost-free way of doing so. There will be a process that people go through to apply [for residential licences]. I can’t guarantee anyone gets any licences. But I can guarantee that there will be a process that people can work through.

“I know it’s painful for people but we have to do this review, for the sake of the future of the harbour. The fees have not been reviewed for 20 years. I know there has been inflationary increases, but in real terms they have gone down and that means the harbour operates at a loss. I’m sorry if you’ve felt hurt by some of the stuff that’s happened. I’ll have to try and understand why. We have time to talk with you, and nothing happens until April.”

Main photo: Betty Woolerton

Read next:

• Rees: ‘The docks are for all, not a privileged few’
• Anger as Bristol ferries and boat dwellers to be hit with huge hike in fees
• ‘Bristol’s boat dwelling community could be completely swept aside’

Listen to the latest Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast: