Newlyn Harbour Commissioners give public presentation in Cornishman forum.

The Cornishman newspaper hosted a very well attended public forum on the future of Newlyn at The Centre.

The new team of commissioners, under the chairmanship of Gilbert Macabe, were introduced by editor Jacqui Walls and given the opportunity to spell out their vision of the port's future. An upbeat presentation was followed by a comments and questions from a wide range of harbour stakeholders, as members of the local fishing community are now deemed!

In the short time they have been together - remembering that the posts are voluntary - the commissioners have made significant changes to the running of the port - though many of these are not visible. These include the formation of a number of sub committees:

• Finance (Chaired by Gilbert McCabe)
• Assets (Chaired by Juliet Taylor)
• Human Resources (Chaired by Ray Tovey)
• Harbour Management and Operations (Chaired by Kevin Bennetts)

These have all been busy reviewing the current harbour operations which were understandably in need of a major overhaul after the previous regime.

Many of the comments from the floor were still concerned over the lack of concrete plans for the much needed new fish market - though these were countered by an assurance from the chairman that far from being shelved new plans were being considered. Glen Caplin, Cornwall Council representative, reaffirmed the Council's pledge of £500,000 of capital project grant funding - agreed in last December's chamber - good news for the port indeed.

One thing is for certain, Newlyn is ripe for development - and, although the harbour does not want the appearance of any large national chains appearing on the scene, they will be mindful of the fact that St Austell can pin its demise as a major shopping centre and the subsequent meteoric rise in Truro's fortunes down to refusing the first Cornish Marks and Spencer's store in the town back in the early 70s!

In Newlyn's case, perhaps well known industry relevant retail outlets would be a better bet in giving tourists a reason to visit the port and not just to see the fleet. As things stand, despite being Cornwall's largest port and the second largest in the England, its sole remaining fish and chip shop is currently up for auction - an big opportunity for someone surely?

One important role for the community or stakeholders to play in the port's fortunes is to support the NPHC's Advisory Board which is currently being formed. Ideas from interested parties or suggestions for additional representatives should be forwarded to the commissioners via their web site where all the contact information needed is available.