Red Alert As Coastguard Threatened

Users of Ireland's coastline are heading onto the rocks and into grave danger with a threat to the only Coastguard station in the North highlighted again this week.

A union representative for workers at the threatened Coastguard facility in Co Down has however welcomed new evidence presented to the British Government on growing opposition to plans to streamline the system.

The UK's Maritime and Coastguard Agency proposal to cut the number of 24-hour stations from 18 to just three were slammed by union leaders at Westminster this week as putting lives at risk.

The NI Coastguard, based at Bregenz House in Bangor, is one of the stations earmarked for closure. Under the plans, either it or the Liverpool station will be allowed to remain, but even then only as a daylight hours base.

Just three 24-hour stations are to remain will be at Aberdeen, in the Southampton/Portsmouth area and Dover under the proposed plans.

This week, the proposals were attacked by Steve Quinn, President of the Coastguard Section of the Public and Commercial Services Union when he told the House of Commons Transport Committee: "Cuts of this magnitude can only lead to putting people's lives at risk."

The powerful Parliamentary committee is investigating the planned cutbacks, which include moves to slash the capability to tackle ship fires and chemical incidents as well as scrapping the provision of emergency tugs.

This was also slammed as a "threat with grave consequences for safety in UK waters".

Also commenting, Allan Graveson, Senior National Secretary of the union, Nautilus, told the MPs: "Change to the system should not mean wholesale, or what appears to be random, cuts."

In February this year, the Stormont First and Deputy First Ministers, Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness visited Bangor coastguard and also called for it to remain open.

See: Bangor Coastguard Gets Political Lifeline

(BMcC/GK)