§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what new assessment he has made of the safety implications of the changes made in the past year in the helicopter search and rescue service. [355]
§ Mr. NorrisThe only change in search and rescue helicopter provision in the past year has been the withdrawal of the Royal Navy helicopter at Portland and its replacement, on a temporary basis, by a coastguard helicopter. This has no adverse implications for safety. At the same time, we have established an inter-departmental helicopter review group to examine the national requirement for helicopters for search and rescue, and how this might most effectively and efficiently be met, as part of an integrated approach to search and rescue. The group is due to report to Ministers in the new year.