Boat numbers on the River Thames continue to decrease and the EA plans a licence increase of 11.5% in January which is unlikely to help.

The EA is also considering selling off some of its lock houses and the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) has said this would be a detrimental step. The IWA says that once lock houses are sold there are risks that new owners could object to traditional boating activities - and have their objections legally upheld - as has happened on the Basingstoke Canal.

There could also be future problems of access across lock and weirs, liabilities during maintenance operations and loss of control over any house alterations.

It suggests that any surplus houses should be rented out, which would give EA a steady income stream to help to fund the navigation.