And those of you who are part of an Association what is your annual subs fee, or is it £22 across the UK. It leaves naff all for the local Association, when BBKA has their cut - and do you have another payment on the night when you attend winter meetings on top of this annual fee??
Next renewal due imminently is 24 quid if I recall correctly, 7 quid to the local association, 3 quid to the county with 14 quid to the BBKA, of which 2 quid is for third party liability insurance and 12 quid is for miscellaneous purposes.
That 12 quid gets me a copy of BBKA news four times a year, a laminated membership card, and ensures that the BBKA continues to have a cosy relationship with pesticide companies ....
Locally there is nothing extra payable for winter meetings (nor any meetings) courses for beginners currently seem to be a significant source of income for the local association, much more so than membership fees and the meagre income from the association shop.
Assuming
we could independently, either as a local or county get liability insurance for 2 quid, then that wasted 12 quid a year across the 800 county members could provide us with some significant infrastructure, or training, or something other than funding a 'national' association that very often appears to be doing its own thing. And it's not just 12 quid is it, hell it's what, 16 quid to get into Stoneleigh? That can't be a loss making exercise can it?
The other day I accidentally turned up this from 2003-2005 on the pesticide issue.
http://www.moraybeekeepers.co.uk/N&Views/Durham.htm
Nothing changes does it.
