RUPERT SMEDLEY
Alison Smedley
Aboard her historic tug Sandbach.
ON THE
CAMPAIGN TRAIL
Alison on her dinghy.
Can you tell us briefly what your job entails? There are four main strands: coordinating IWA’s parliamentary campaigning, leading on IWA’s national navigation campaigns, I’m part of IWA’s press office and I also do the secretariat for IWA’s Navigation Committee. I was first employed by the Association seven years ago with the sole remit (as branch campaigns officer) to get IWA branch work parties up and running. Since then my role has gradually evolved to become what it is now. I’m away from home once or twice a month at meetings either in London (at Westminster), or with navigation authorities. I also try to spend a day a month at IWA head office in Chesham, which enables me to catch up with colleagues and have meetings about specific projects or campaigns we’re working on. The rest of the time I’m working from home in Staffordshire overlooking the Caldon Canal.
Waterways talks political wrangling, MBEs and WRGie marriage with IWA’s policy & campaigns officer Alison Smedley IWA has a long history of successful political campaigning. Do you still think it's one of the organisation's overriding strengths? Definitely. In particular our campaigning for the future funding of the publicly funded waterways. Canal & River Trust enjoys the good contract with Government that it has directly as a result of IWA’s work in the years leading up to the charity being launched, and we continue to campaign for better funding for the Environment Agency navigations too.
Have ongoing Brexit negotiations impeded these efforts recently?
Alison (l) talks to MPs at IWA’s annual parliamentary dinner.
Winter 2019 035 alison smedley intervew SH AH.indd 35
They certainly haven’t helped, especially all the good work concerning the potential transfer of EA navigations to CRT. And there’s been a lot of change in politics as a result of Brexit, not least a new waterways minister [the previous incumbent, Therese Coffey, was moved to secretary of state for work and pensions following Amber Rudd’s resignation in September]. Hopefully, however, the new one will be a breath of fresh air as we certainly haven’t had much interaction with the waterways minister in recent years, which has been frustrating. IWA Waterways |
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