The state of Watchet harbour has steadily deteriorated over the last 10 years, despite the change of leaseholder a few years ago. The district council are the land owners and they have leased to 2 separate organisations in recent years who have each failed to bring it back into being a functional harbour. The District Council will shortly be subsumed into a unitary County Council, having recently become a combined authority, when 2 district councils joined. Each change in local government authority unfortunately leads to delays in matters like this.

Watchet is a small town on the North coast of Somerset, and the marina offers the potential for visits from up to 200 private boat owners at a time from multiple South Wales ports who wish to cross the Bristol channel for a night in a different (English) port. There are very few suitable ports on the North Devon/ Somerset Coast available. As such it is vital for the economy of Watchet, whose visitors numbers are otherwise restricted by inadequate parking.

A continual dredging programme with the operation of a harbour gate is necessary to maintain it as a functioning harbour. This has not happened. At present boat owners are finding their boats resting on mud for many hours a day, and cooling inlets are being filled with silt with subsequent engine damage. Boat movements are only possible for one or two hours around high tide. A dredger, belonging to the company who currently are leaseholders, has sat in the harbour non-operational for over a month.

I would ask that the District Council/soon to be, County Council immediately start enforcement proceedings to compel the leaseholder to restore the functionality of the harbour, and to terminate the lease if this doesn't happen. With a view to establishing a functioning harbour.