Recent quotes:

Thames mudlarking permits to be issued again but capped to protect site | London | The Guardian

Overall permit numbers will now be capped at 4,000, and these will be valid for one year rather than three. In addition, the option for permit-holders to automatically renew has been removed. Those interested can instead sign up for a waiting list, which launches at midday on Wednesday 2 October. The changes were introduced because demand had surged to a level “that was just too much for the foreshore to sustain”, said Pippa Barber, head of statutory consents and compliance at the PLA. “There is only a certain amount of foreshore, and there is only a certain amount of history. History only happens once, a pipe only gets dropped once, and once it’s gone, it’s gone for ever.