A lock-side show down last Thursday in front of waterways minister Phil Woolas MP between Environment Agency bosses, trade union officials, lock-keepers and their wives and the MPs for Reading West and Maidenhead eventually saw a climbdown by the EA over their plans to dispose of twenty-two of the fifty-seven lock houses along the Thames.

The following day (Friday, June 20^th) the EA issued a statement announcing that the lock-house disposal programme had been suspended for six months to allow time for further negotiations.

The Environment Agency Thames Waterways Manager, Eileen McKeever said: -

‘Following a meeting with the Minister Phil Woolas and MP’s Martin Salter and Theresa May, we have agreed to put on hold any changes proposed by the lock house review until we have completed our full review of Waterways staff  roles and responsibilities,  and terms and conditions.

“No action will be taken to sell or rent lock houses until these negotiations on the full review are completed.  We anticipate that this will take 6 months but this guarantee will continue until all negotiations are completed or January 1, 2009, which ever is latest.  We will then review the position on lock houses with lock keepers and their representatives and with the MPs group.”

Martin Salter MP said:

‘At long last and after much campaigning and political pressure there appears to have been a welcome outbreak of commonsense at the Environment Agency. I am delighted that these ill-thought out plans have been put on hold which now creates a welcome breathing space to enable sensible discussions to take place with the lock-keepers and river users on the way forward.

As far as the public and the majority of Thames Valley MPs are concerned the bottom line is that every Thames lock should have a resident lock-keeper on hand to deal with emergencies, to manage the weirs at times of flooding and to deter and prevent crime, vandalism and anti-social behaviour. As far as I’m concerned the EA’s lockhouse review is dead and buried and we start again in January with a blank piece of paper once the long overdue negotiations on lock-keepers terms and conditions have been concluded.’

Labour candidate for the Henley by-election, Richard McKenzie added:

“The lock-keepers have had pretty shabby treatment from their bosses at the EA who have sought to prevent them from speaking out publicly on this issue. However, I have been impressed by the formidable campaigning zeal of the lock-keepers wives who have mobilised the support of thousands of people who care about the management of the River Thames.”