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London boat show dates changed

LONDON, England -- The London International Boat Show has been brought forward a week after a misunderstanding about exhibit dates at the venue.

The show was originally planned to be held from January 9 - 19, 2003, but exhibition centre owner Earls Court Ltd double-booked the six-day period when the boats were to be removed from the show.

The dispute went to independent arbitration after National Boat Shows, a division of the British Marine Federation, protested about the change.

"It's Earls Court's error," said Gill Jefferson, NBS sales director. "It's nothing to do with NBS. Contracts were signed two years ago, and we have a letter confirming the dates."

However, the arbitrator ruled that an earlier agreement with Amusement Trades Exhibition, the group who were also booked, took precedence, forcing the London Boat Show to run from January 2 - 12.

Andrew Morris, Chief Executive Earls Court and Olympia Group, said: "We deeply regret the inconvenience caused to these two valuable customers but now hope that we can go forward in a positive manner to ensure that these events are staged successfully at our venue next year."

The London Boat Show will move to an exhibition centre in London's Docklands from 2004.