Wednesday, October 02, 2013

RoRo Yer Boat Gently Down The Income Stream

There'll be a rustling of brarn envelopes down at our lovely port tomorrow, as the sealed bids are opened in the race to become Thanet Council's appointed consultant with the unenviable task of finding a RoRo operator to replace TransEuropa Ferries.

The, er, 'lucky' winner will have until June next year to entice an operator to the port, and will get a percentage of whatever income that attracts. Presumably the lowest percentage (or the envelope stuffed with the most fifty pound notes) wins.

The council's tender document, a copy of which I have in my hot little hands, states:

The Council has a desire to attract a ferry service(s) back to the Port of Ramsgate, as having an active ferry service assists in regenerating the locality, delivering jobs and retains skills within Thanet.

The Port of Ramsgate knows that it can deliver the relevant services to a ferry provider as it has successfully facilitated operational support for previous operations.

The Council’s aim is to have one or more ferry companies operating out of the Port of Ramsgate to regain public confidence in the both the Council and the Port of Ramsgate. It raises morale within residents of Ramsgate and brings support businesses to the area.

'Successfully facilitated operational support for previous operations', eh? Well you can't argue with that, can you? I'd say that stuffing £3.4m worth of our council tax into a dead duck was a right little morale booster for Ramsgate residents, wouldn't you?

Long term readers will recall that the last time we were on the verge of getting a new ferry operator was in 2009, when I made the above video commemorating the imminent arrival of Euroferries' new vessel Bonanza Express. Needless to say, it never did arrive. Neither has their latest ghost ship, despite it being trumpeted all over their website.

On the plus side, warm and heartfelt congratulations are due to me for clocking up half a million page views since July 2008 (and more than three quarters of a million since I started this blog in January 2006, according to Site Meter). Three cheers for me!!!!!

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

Half a million - that's some clock-up. Congratulations!

Richard Eastcliff said...

Clock-up or conspiracy? Ha!

Anonymous said...

Nice work if you can get it..121 emails:- http://www.directferries.co.uk/operators.htm

Anonymous said...

SFP Ferry Ventures

Ian Driver said...

Bookings accepted via local estate agent

Anonymous said...

'ere we go, 'ere we go, 'ere we go. Again. Triple sigh.

Congratulations on half a mill, decided on whether or not to maintain the blog?

Anonymous said...

Bet you wish you had a pound in the bank for every hit. hold on ....

Anonymous said...

I heard there were only three envelopes. One contained an invitation to sign up for a PPI refund, another contained a button and the third was a birthday card for Richard Card which had been addressed to TDC by mistake.

Anonymous said...

Boring old gits, you get on.my tits

It's only.moneey

Anonymous said...

Less of the old - titty! (Facebook - Facebook - Facebook...this is a subliminal announcement)

Anonymous said...

TDC have missed a trick here. They should have made the contract multi purposed and asked for the consultant to find a buyer for and airline(s) to operate from Manston. Think of all those passengers needing taxis and local services that this would bring rather than the 40 tonners just passing through to the port.

Anonymous said...

TDC has missed the boat several times, they're merely treading water pitching for 'ferry-hunters', the ferry is a dead duck - dead in the water, we'll all have to weather this financial storm. Pirates ahoy!

OBO110X said...

I saw that livery on two coaches on the M25 last week. Has the Bonanza Express sprouted wheels and multiplied. Watch out TDC. More money to waste.

OBO110X said...

I saw that livery on two coaches on the M25 last week. Has the Bonanza Express sprouted wheels and multiplied. Watch out TDC. More money to waste.

OBO110X said...

I saw that livery on two coaches on the M25 last week. Has the Bonanza Express sprouted wheels and multiplied. Watch out TDC. More money to waste.

OBO110X said...

No I didn't see them 3 times. Finger problems

Anonymous said...

Did you know that the Ramsgate Harbour issues were at the root of a Thanet tory party split twenty years ago ? With the short term emergence of Thanet Independent Tories. (TITs)

This was also at a time Kent Police Fraud Squad were investigating at TDC.

BANG in the middle of which Sericol thought someone was half inching chemicals.

So investigation led to the discovery of massive contamination of the aquifer. Had the chemical been left draining to obscure thefts ? And that remains a line of inquiry presumably with Kent Police.

The stumbling block, for local plod, appears to have been the law. Explosive Substances Act 1883 and so forth.

It appears that one sided fisticuffs may have erupted at a TDC Planning meeting. And in the aftermath one tory cllr threatened to make IEDs and blow up his elderly female independent tory victim.

The assault at a Planning Cttee, and threats to kill by explosives, became an issue for airing at High Court in 1998. I wonder what was said in evidence by KPA and TDC cllrs ?

The card referred to by Anon above was in fact the anniversary card for 15 years of one particular tory cllr refusing to clarify for his electorate just what he said on oath in evidence.

It was addressed to Harvey Patterson from Richard Card.

Harvey has fallen silent. Just as he thought he had fobbed off Crime and Disorder Act 1998 up popped Terrorism Act 2000 and matters he is not allowed by law to be silent about. And for his anniversary treat we are now introducing the Explosives Substances Act.

Harvey is getting to dread the brahn envelopes.







Anonymous said...

Another thread killed off by the dreaded garbage from Rick the Prick!

Anonymous said...

Talking of garbage, I see old Tim suffered a bit of repetitive finger jerking up there.

Anonymous said...

Why would he dread them 8:30, they all go straight in the bin along with the ones from the other nutters who flog dead horses.

Anonymous said...

I am applying for the job of admiralty Marshall to sit down the port with a handful of writs to pounce when they default on their harbour dues for a week.
Stargazer.

Anonymous said...

So the ferry has gone bust...and the council suddenly decides to have another ferry possibly in the future?

Which numpty is making these decisions? And why is the taxpayer paying to fund a council port and council staff to do nothing for another year?

Anonymous said...

I know people don't want Manston to take off and be successful. However if any new airport is going to happen in Kent or in Thames, Manston is best choice only because getting out of Kent is going to be near impossible with any new airport at least Manston is only a short distance away and popping aboard will be cheaper and quicker than Heathrow or Gatwick.