WITH regards to your article on canal boaters and permanent moorings, there are some points which I think need to be made. The boat licence is a licence to use the canal, analogous to a car’s road tax, whereas mooring fees are comparable to the rent one might pay for a dedicated parking space.

The CRT considers boaters to be in one of two groups: those with a permanent mooring and the others who are classed as "continuous cruisers", that is they are cruising the waterways continuously.

They are expected to keep moving, hence the requirement to move at least 10 miles in one direction every 14 days, no major concern for a genuine continuous cruiser.

There is, however, a group of boaters who indulge in what is known as "bridge hopping", who do not pay a mooring fee. They will moor on the towpath near a road bridge and use a vehicle to travel to work, take their kids to school, etc.

After a couple of weeks they will move to another road bridge in the vicinity. This will be repeated at 14 day intervals "hopping" between the road bridges in the area.

They use the roads, have their children educated in the local schools, probably use the local library and certainly expect the police and fire service to come to their assistance if they are assaulted, robbed or have a fire on board but they do not pay a penny in council tax towards these services.

Boaters with a permanent mooring do not pay council tax either but they do pay a significant sum for their moorings, a portion of which will be used by the owners of the moorings to pay their council tax bill, so the permanent moorers are contributing, albeit indirectly.

John Weller, Salisbury Street, Devizes