I have been reading with interest the recent posts about the RYA YM qualifications and just wanted to share my thoughts. The UK is still the only European counrty that does not enforce compulsary qualification for anyone wanting to take to the water, the French and Spanish goverments even have licences that extend right down to 9.9 horsepower outbaords! The RYA must take the majority of the credit for so far resisting the goverments attempts to introduce similar legislation.
About six years ago when the MCA first started hinting that professional yachtmaster qualifications were to be introduced to British flagged vessels opinion was divided some, like myself, grumbled about the cost of the associated courses and inconvenience of taking time off to complete the courses but went ahead and did them anyway and others chose to simply ignore the MCA's warnings assuming nothing would ever come of it.
We now have no choice but to live with the MCA rules which are becoming stricter and effecting smaller and smaller yachts all the time. The pathetically ineffectual PYA (the Professional Yachtsmens Association) was set up to supposedly give us all a voice and to open channels of communication with the MCA. Nobody took much notice with the result that the MCA steamrollered it's ideas through with nothing being done until it was too far gone to stop them or at least curtail their plans
The point I am trying to make is that SOONER OR LATER COMPULSARY QUALIFICATIONS WILL BE BROUGHT IN WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOT. It is surely better to either back the RYA as the only recognised voice of the people or do something to make your feelings heard before it is too late?
About six years ago when the MCA first started hinting that professional yachtmaster qualifications were to be introduced to British flagged vessels opinion was divided some, like myself, grumbled about the cost of the associated courses and inconvenience of taking time off to complete the courses but went ahead and did them anyway and others chose to simply ignore the MCA's warnings assuming nothing would ever come of it.
We now have no choice but to live with the MCA rules which are becoming stricter and effecting smaller and smaller yachts all the time. The pathetically ineffectual PYA (the Professional Yachtsmens Association) was set up to supposedly give us all a voice and to open channels of communication with the MCA. Nobody took much notice with the result that the MCA steamrollered it's ideas through with nothing being done until it was too far gone to stop them or at least curtail their plans
The point I am trying to make is that SOONER OR LATER COMPULSARY QUALIFICATIONS WILL BE BROUGHT IN WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOT. It is surely better to either back the RYA as the only recognised voice of the people or do something to make your feelings heard before it is too late?
