Boat owners are angry about the number of vessels left unused in the island’s harbours.

Some have told the Examiner that boats have been left in the harbour for years on end.

Indeed, several boats there are clearly deteriorating, as our photographs show.

In recent years, 27 boats have been disposed of by harbour authorities.

One local resident, a former boat owner in Douglas, told the Isle of Man Examiner that many vessels never left the harbour.

He said: ‘You have no end of fellas messing around on the boats, little bit of hammering here, painting there.

‘But most of these boats never go out.’

In two years, harbour dues have been increased by 24% as a deterrent to people leaving their boats in the harbours.

However, there are still a lot of boats being left and lots of questions about the practices of harbour authorities in terms of registration and regulation.

Harbours have been the subject of a revamp strategy set out by the Department of Infrastructure in 2018.

The strategy is designed to ‘ensure that there is an integrated, reliable, secure and resilient provision of island-wide infrastructure that meets the social and economic needs of the island up to 2050’.

This aim was set out by Ray Harmer, then minister for the DoI, and even in this strategy it was outlined that there was ‘limited impounded water space in which to develop additional berthing provisions’.

A government spokesman said: ‘Most vessels in the island’s harbours are in a well-maintained condition.

‘There are a few vessels within the harbours that are in a poor condition.

‘In recent years, issues like Covid-19 lockdowns, where owners have been unable to look after their vessels for long periods of time, has resulted in harbours staff being unable to start and progress seizures and disposals.

‘This may have led to a small increase in the number of vessels being classed as unfit or in poor condition.’

The spokesman said that harbours staff conducted regular inspections and notified management of any derelict vessels or any in poor condition.

The Examiner then asked if there were any examples of boats being disposed of by the DoI’s harbours division.

‘Between 2015 and 2021 the division disposed of 27 vessels of different types and sizes,’ the spokesman said. ‘Since the start of this year, the Claire Anne in Peel was seized and is in the process of being disposed of.

‘Also, motor tug Diligence in Douglas was seized and the division is waiting for the owner to have a survey completed. Subject to the result of the survey, the vessel will either be taken to the UK or disposed of.’

However, the owner of a boat in Douglas harbour, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: ‘I just had to show my insurance, which was stamped and I paid my dues.’

There seems to be limited background checks into the conditions of the boats when they are issued their spot in the harbour.

The DoI has issued the harbour costs for the 2022/23 year, the fees for pontooning in Douglas coming to £754.18 for a pleasure craft over six metres.

After a recent Freedom of Information request, it was found that one boat in the Peel dry dock owes £782.82 in harbour dues between 2017 and 2021. It has also been revealed that ‘no enforcement action has been taken against the registered owner that is in arrears’.

Boat owner Trevor Cowin, who lives in Peel and submitted the Freedom of Information request, said: ‘I travel over the Peel harbour bridge maybe four times a week and it is quite unsightly to see old boats lying in the harbour, the condition of some would render them unseaworthy.’

The DoI said there had been no significant increase in the number of abandoned boats.

The spokesman added: ‘Any which are neglected or abandoned are obviously of concern to Isle of Man Harbours and periodic reviews are undertaken to assess whether they can be removed using powers granted under the Harbours Act 2010.’