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  The muck on the water is certainly nothing to do with shipping. Any ship discharging anything into the water is subject to massive fines and personnel are liable for imprisonment. The seasonal algal bloom causing it is equally evident over in Dunkerque. It is stirred up by the ships propellers and thrusters and by the local dredgers.
  
  Regarding Keith's query in #16: "What is it that the peoples port has in mind to tart up Dover, does needs costing as already the figures just to actually take over the port don't add up so wheres all this extra money going to come from?"
  
  My understanding is that the People's Port has offered the government a derisory £200m for the port (or half a Nimrod in the new currency). The government requires that an additional £200m is obtained as "working capital". Goodness knows what this is for as the port pays its way from the operating profits, has a cash reserve of £70m, and has an £85m continuing improvement plan in place for the next few years.
  
  This basically leaves £200m of debt to play with of which they propose to allocate £50m to the town of Dover. As they have been at pains to point out, this is entirely debt with no equity apart from the miniscule amount raised in Dover Bonds. In the unlikely event that this amounted to £4m it would be 1% of the total £400m debt with the other 99%+ being borrowed from financial institutions, enabling the charade to be described as communitisation rather than privatisation and saving Charlie's blushes.
  
  I am sure that our financial experts will correct me if I am wrong but giving the people of Dover a gift of £50m of debt seems rather like me going to my nephew's bank and taking out a £50 overdraft on his account and giving it to him as a Christmas present.

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