Marine Rescue Services (Hansard, 5 March 1999)

§ Mr. Robert Syms (Poole)

This is the second Adjournment debate that I have secured in this Parliament, and I am pleased that the Minister who responded to the first is here again today. However, given the wide range of subjects covered by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, it does not surprise me that that should be so.

I intend to touch on two aspects of the maritime rescue services—the Coastguard and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. I must make it perfectly clear that they are two separate organisations, one of which is a governmental organisation and one of which is a private charity. However, they work closely together as key parts of the emergency services to save those in trouble at sea.

The Coastguard service was last debated on, I believe, 26 November 1997, after the Government had produced their five-year strategy for the service. That debate, which was introduced by my hon. Friend the Member for Gosport (Mr. Viggers), seems to have been quite stormy, particularly because many hon. Members hold their local coastguard stations very dear.

Fifteen months on, the Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Select Committee has just produced a pretty critical report. Given that the Minister has not formally responded to the Select Committee's report and that we may have a debate on it in a few weeks' time, I shall understand if she is not able to respond to this debate in great detail. However, I make no apology for raising this matter today.

Poole is of course a great maritime port. It is the second largest port in the south-west of England, second to Avonmouth. It is the second largest natural harbour in the world, and it has great links with the sea. Therefore, issues of sea safety have a great resonance among my constituents.

The Coastguard service is important. Having read about it prior to this debate, I was surprised to learn that it has only approximately 430 regular members, and 3,100 auxiliaries. I should have thought that the service was far larger, bearing in mind that it has to discharge its duties over 10,000 miles of our coastline and 1.25 million square miles of sea and that it sometimes has to undertake operations 1,000 miles out into the north Atlantic.

I shall touch on particular aspects of the Select Committee's sixth report. The key point is that the Committee suggested that the Government ought to reverse their decision to merge the Maritime Safety Agency and the Coastguard. One or two people in my constituency have suggested that. I do not feel strongly about this but I am not sure whether the two really go together.

Another key point was the proposal to reduce the number of maritime rescue co-ordination centres from 21, closing those at Oban, Pentland, Tyne Tees and Liverpool and merging those at Lee-on-the-Solent and Portland.

The Committee was keen that the Coastguard should keep local knowledge—a key factor in command and control. The Committee felt that the proposals to merge 1411 Portland and Solent would not be welcomed, and asked for a reversal. My hon. Friend the Member for South Dorset (Mr. Bruce)—a remorseless exponent of his constituents' interests who has brought up the subject of the Portland base many times—was happy for me to raise the issue. His constituents are keen to retain the base, and would not wish it to close in 2002. The report criticised the consultation process, and the Committee stated that the savings from the review would be only £500,000 not much in terms of the local Coastguard scheme.

The management of the Poole harbour commissioners told me that if there were a Herald of Free Enterprise-type accident in Poole harbour—something nobody would wish to see—a knowledge of the harbour or coastline would be important. At the moment, an individual from Poole could go to the Portland control centre to give advice about the harbour. If the centre were moved 200 miles away, that would not be possible. Local knowledge is a fundamental tool of the Coastguard watch officers.

Interestingly, the Committee felt that a period of stability within the Coastguard would have been welcomed. Given that the work load of the Coastguard has increased substantially—there were 11,667 incidents in 1997, an increase of 110 per cent. on 10 years ago, and 16,884 people were assisted—there is good argument for that proposal.

I welcome the fact that the Coastguard is bringing in a new communications system—the integrated Coastguard communications system—but I caution against putting all one's eggs into technology. Experience and training are very important in this area. I served formerly on the Wessex regional health authority, which had a regional information computer system which did not work. The National Air Traffic Service at Swanwick is an example where the hope of managers to bring in technology for emergencies has not worked out. We need training, and we need to look realistically at what technology can do.

I am looking forward to Lord Donaldson's report on command and control, salvage and rescue. The report is with the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. The Sea Empress and other recent disasters show that we need to look at the matter. I look forward to the report being published before the end of this month.

I have mentioned my concerns about the Coastguard, and I wish to move on to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Members who read the newspapers yesterday will be aware that the RNLI—based in Poole, in my constituency—is celebrating its 175th anniversary. The RNLI is well loved and does an excellent job for this country. It was founded in 1824 by Sir William Hilary, an aristocrat and lifeboat man from the Isle of Man.

We are almost unique, in that the lifeboats around our coastline are paid for almost wholly by private charity and fund raising. Since 1824, the RNLI has saved 132,000 lives off our coast. It has running costs of £200,000 a day and, of its 4,000 lifeboat men, there are 200 women, playing a full part in life-saving. It takes £80 million a year to run the lifeboats, £50 million of which comes from bequests. The RNLI is successful in that way. It is all private money. As people often say in the RNLI, a rescue does not start with the lifeboat being launched, but with a man or woman collecting on the street corner. That is important.

There is one slight gripe that the RNLI has. Like many charities, it contributes in terms of VAT. Of the £80 million a year it raises, the RNLI pays the Treasury 1412 £1 million a year in VAT. The Minister is not a Treasury Minister, but perhaps she could convey concerns on this matter, as the RNLI does a great service saving lives off shore.

The importance of the celebration year—I note that the Minister may be taking part in some activities associated with it—is to increase the profile of the RNLI. There is a very strong feeling for the organisation among members of the population who are a little older, but it may not have the same profile in the minds of the younger population. If that successful institution is to continue, we must fund-raise throughout the community, and the 175th anniversary is a useful opportunity to do so.

The institution is very unusual in that it is a royal organisation that serves lifeboats not only throughout the United Kingdom but in southern Ireland. It pre-dates southern Irish independence. After southern Ireland became independent, the lifeboat organisation asked the Government of southern Ireland what they wished it to do, and they said, "Just carry on", which proves that the Irish are very sensible, as basically it is a free service, although it raises funds in southern Ireland as well.

Poole has the busiest lifeboat station in the country. Last year, the all-weather boat had 36 calls and saved two lives, and the inshore boat answered 78 calls and saved five lives. It is a very important institution; I am sure that the Minister recognises that, as I believe that one or two of her relatives have worked for it as lifeboat men.

From 20 and 26 June there is to be a major flotilla of lifeboats in Poole, and there is to be a conference in Bournemouth—the 18th International Lifeboat Federation conference—in which ideas and techniques will be exchanged. That will be a useful opportunity, in this celebration year, for lifeboats to promote themselves.

I pay tribute to the director of the RNLI who retired at the end of last year, Lieutenant-Commander Brian Miles CBE, who did an excellent job in his 34 years at the helm of the lifeboat institution. He will be fondly remembered by the organisation. I wish success to the new director, Andrew Fremantle.

I have raised a few concerns about the Coastguard. I will understand if the Minister does not want to give a detailed reply, because no doubt she will do so when she responds to the Select Committee and in the debate that we may have on the Floor of the House in a few weeks' time, but I am sure that she will join me in recognising the real achievements of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. I believe that it needs public support. We need to continue to raise money, and it will continue to do the job, which we all appreciate, of saving lives off shore.

Those of us on land often see an ambulance or a fire engine, but the emergency services that come into action when people are in trouble at sea may not always be within the sight of our citizens. We should cherish and support that organisation. I look forward to the Minister's reply.

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (Ms Glenda Jackson)

I congratulate the hon. Member for Poole (Mr. Syms) on securing this opportunity to discuss marine rescue services and the men and women who play a vital role in life-saving around our shores. He referred 1413 to possibly the two most famous search-and-rescue services in this country, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and HM Coastguard, and said that they were separate organisations, but, as I am sure that he is aware, the co-ordination of marine rescue services falls to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, through its national network of 24-hour HM Coastguard rescue co-ordination centres.

The hon. Gentleman referred to the report by the Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Committee. He is right that it would be improper for me to respond to it in this debate, but the Government welcome the Select Committee's report and will give a considered response in due course.

The hon. Gentleman has specific and individual concerns regarding the proposed co-location of Portland and Solent. Co-location will not in any way mean a reduction in manning or a merger of the two divisions as they are at the moment. He mentioned the importance of local knowledge, which is indeed vital, but I am sure that he would agree that the local knowledge needed to ensure the safety of hundreds of miles of our coastline and millions of square miles of the seas around them could not be maintained exclusively in the brains of individuals, and there are many ways to ensure that local knowledge is at the fingertips of the coastguards when they need it in the co-ordinating centres.

The Coastguard, of course, deals with both search-and-rescue incidents and the threat of pollution. The Government will be publishing Lord Donaldson's report on 15 March. The Coastguard has its own extensive marine and coastal rescue organisation, with more than 3,000 auxiliary coastguard volunteers formed into nearly 400 response teams. I believe that through the services of the RNLI and other volunteer rescue organisations—for example, the facilities of the Ministry of Defence and the Coastguard organisation—we have the best search-and-rescue service in the world. That is what the Government are committed to continuing.

Last year the Coastguard co-ordinated 11,747 incidents resulting in 18,965 persons being assisted or rescued. It is also worth noting that 98.7 per cent. of these incidents were brought to a successful conclusion, thanks to our excellent marine rescue service.

The Coastguard and RNLI do not react only to marine casualty situations but have an excellent relationship when working together towards promoting marine safety within the United Kingdom. This is achieved through such groups as the sea safety liaison committee, where the pooled knowledge of the two organisations gained through more than 350 years of experience between them of marine safety is being used to excellent effect.

Initiatives aimed primarily at the sport and recreational user have been successfully introduced, which offer safety advice and education. It is in this way that the awareness of safety issues and accident prevention have been brought to the fore.

I know that the hon. Gentleman takes a keen interest in marine safety matters, especially as the RNLI headquarters are situated in Poole. I should declare a personal interest because my great grandfather and grandfather served on the lifeboat in my home town of Hoylake on the Wirral peninsula. When I had the privilege 1414 of visiting the headquarters at Poole, those present kindly dug into their archives and produced the most wonderful photograph of my grandfather sitting with the crew outside the lifeboat house at Hoylake. The photograph is now hanging on my office wall.

I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will agree that all marine rescue services deliver the highest standards of search and rescue, but the timing of the debate is particularly noteworthy as it follows the day on which the RNLI celebrated 175 years of exceptional and gallant service to the maritime community. I am sure that I speak for the entire House in extending my warmest congratulations and the country's gratitude to it for the service it provides and for the courage so often displayed by the crews of its lifeboats. The Government wish to be associated with the sentiments expressed in early-day motion 387.

The RNLI operates a fleet of more than 300 lifeboats from 222 lifeboat stations round our coasts and, as the hon. Gentleman said, those of the Republic of Ireland, as well as a relief fleet of about 130 boats. As a registered charity, the organisation relies entirely upon voluntary contributions and volunteer crews.

Calls on the service have nearly doubled over the past 10 years, with on average 19 calls for assistance each and every day. More than 60 per cent. of all marine incidents round our shores involve the services of the RNLI. This amounts to more than 7,000 incidents a year.

It is also important to recognise that the United Kingdom is served by other voluntary marine organisations. I am sure that the House would wish me to acknowledge too their significant contribution to the saving of life at sea and on our shores.

No debate about marine rescue services would be complete without including the contribution made by the Ministry of Defence through its network of search-and-rescue and other helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. These together with helicopters contracted to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency provide unique air rescue coverage of the United Kingdom.

The provision of such a service can sometimes come with a very high personal price. The House will recall the tragic death of Coastguard helicopter winchman William Deacon in November 1997 during his heroic rescue of 10 crew members from the Green Lily off the Shetland islands. I pay tribute also to the RNLI for its part in that rescue. But for the tremendous efforts and skill of the coxswain and crew of the Lerwick lifeboat, five crew members would undoubtedly have lost their lives.

The Lerwick lifeboat was launched and the Coastguard helicopter scrambled to stand by the vessel Green Lily, which had been drifting, disabled, towards Bressay, Shetland, for most of the day while tugs tried to reach her and connect a tow. Coxswain Hewin Clark took the Lerwick lifeboat alongside and held her there, despite being slammed against the hull or having to manoeuvre clear of the ship, until five of the crew were saved and the ship was a mere 200 m from the shore. The Coastguard helicopter then saved the other 10 men. It was during this phase of the rescue that winchman William Deacon was tragically washed overboard and drowned.

1415 Coxswain Clark was awarded the RNLI's gold medal—the lifeboat crews' Victoria Cross—for the rescue. That was the first gold medal to be awarded for 16 years. His crew were all awarded RNLI bronze medals.

The rescue of all the crew of the Green Lily typifies the extent to which all the rescue services work together, often in extraordinary conditions, to the common end of saving life. All sea and coastal users owe an enormous debt of gratitude to the members of the marine rescue services who daily put their lives at risk to save others.

1416 In closing, I should like to assure the hon. Gentleman, the House and the country that the Government are fully committed to ensuring that marine safety services in the United Kingdom remain among the best in the world. We will also continue to work tirelessly not only to maintain, but to improve the service provided to sea and coastal users.