PLAID Cymru AM Lindsay Whittle has urged Welsh ministers to ensure the shake-up in the running of canals leads to job opportunities for the disabled and disadvantaged.
The South Wales East AM raised the issue in Senedd questions to environment minister John Griffiths.
British Waterways is being replaced by a charitable trust which will run the UK’s canals and rivers. In Mr Whittle’s south-east Wales region, a £854,000 Heritage Lottery grant was recently announced to restore a derelict section of the historic Monmouthshire & Brecon canal in Cwmbran.
Mr Whittle asked the minister to provide information on the extent British Waterways was developing as a form of social enterprise that could lead to employment opportunities for disabled and disadvantaged people.
Mr Griffiths said that he would be happy to raise the issue at a meeting with British Waterways later this month. He told Mr Whittle that he was aware of ambitious plans for development and work in Wales involving partnerships with other organisations which could provide opportunities to meet the issue raised.
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