Scotland's Inland Waterways
Scotland has only a small number of canals, but they are some of the most famous and historic in Great Britain. They are: Caledonian Canal, the Union Canal, the Forth and Clyde Canal, the Crinan Canal and the Monklands Canal.
British Waterways (BW) - a cross-border public body - run and manage Scotland's canal network. However, devolution has transferred responsibility to the Scottish government, enabling them to sponsor and influence BW activities in Scotland. Scottish Ministers have responsibility for appointing two members of the board of BW. The Scottish government give grant-in-aid to BW as shown in the table below.
Grant-in-aid for British Waterways| Year | Initial budget | Extra in-year funding | Total |
|---|
| 2001/2002 | £7.1m | £1.5m | £8.6m |
| 2002/2003 | £7.1m | £6.71m | £13.81m |
| 2003/2004 | £8.4m | £4.2m | £12.6m |
| 2004/2005 | £8.9m | £3.7m | £12.6m |
| 2005/2006 | £8.9m | £3.0m | £11.9m |
| 2006/2007 | £10.9m | £3.9m | £14.8m |
| 2007/2008 | £11.4m | - | £11.4m |
| 2008/2009 | £11.6m | | £11.6m |
| 2009/2010 | £11.8m | | £11.8m |
| 2010/2011 | £12m | | £12m |
The sponsorship branch can be contacted at:
Freight and Inland Waterways Branch,
Area 2-F (Dockside),
Victoria Quay,
EH6 6QQ.
Email: Justin.Huthersall@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
For England and Wales, the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) act as sponsors. The two departments work closely together.