Minister to scale back plans for coastguard service cuts

The proposal to cut the number of local rescue stations from 19 to nine, only four of which would have remained open 24 hours a day, sparked anger in coastal communities and opposition among some Tory MPs.

Yesterday Commons Leader Sir George Young told MPs the Government was “having another look” at the proposals and would respond before the Commons rises in July.

It is understood Transport Secretary Philip Hammond will now reprieve some of the threatened stations. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency will get one high-tech new national centre to replace the abandoned stations, rather than the two which had been planned.

Almost half of the service’s full-time staff had been slated to lose their jobs under the original plans, but the impact on staffing numbers of Mr Hammond’s climbdown is not yet known.

A Whitehall source said that the Transport Secretary was responding to arguments he has heard during an ongoing consultation process, including warnings the skills of experienced coastguards would be lost if local centres were closed.

Public and Commercial Services union general secretary Mark Serwotka said the “climbdown” was evidence of what can be achieved by community campaigning.

He added: “It is not yet clear what any new proposals will include and there are still battles to be won to maintain vital local services that our members provide 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We would expect new plans to be subject to proper consultation and negotiation.”

A Department for Transport spokesman said: “Our proposals are in response to a long-overdue need to bring the way coastguard rescues are co-ordinated into the 21st century, making this vital rescue service stronger, more resilient and improving its services at the front line. The Government is committed to taking all points of view into account before deciding how best to proceed.”