Loch Awe Fatal Accident Inquiry hears of standoff between Fire and Coastguard...
A particularly disturbing picture emerged at today’s hearing of the Fatal Accident Inquiry into the deaths, at night and in heavy fog, of four Glasgow fishermen on Loch Awe in March 2009.The men were...
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SNP Government to cede control of Scotland’s coasts to a call centre in...
The House of Commons Transport Select Committee this week convened a second hearing into the UK Government’s plans to ‘modernise’ the Coastguard service by closing ten coastguard stations – including...
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One for Scotland: a thought provoking incident scenario under the new minimal...
There are two major problems for Scotland in the major cuts and rearrangements to the Coastguard service proposed by the UK Government and the Maritime and Coastguard Association. They are coverage –...
View ArticleNew revelations on cut-and-shut coastguard plan: serious problems for NI if...
More revelations today serve to show just how unthought is the entire Department for Transport / MCA proposal to turn the national coastguard service into a cut-and-shut operation – with all of the...
View ArticleJulian Penney: The urgency in the Clyde Coastguard situation
For Argyll learned yesterday evening that the aerials and transmitting masts from Clyde Coastguard will start to be transferred to Belfast and Stornoway as soon as this Monday 5th November, with those...
View ArticleDVLA staff in one day strike over office closures
Staff at the 39 regional offices of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) are on a one day strike today in protest at the UK Department for Transport’s plans to close them, centralising the...
View ArticleBelfast Coastguard Manager resigns: a month after transfer of responsibility...
[Updated below: 28th January] Rescue Coordination Centre Manager, Richard Newell, of Belfast Coastguard, resigned from his post around two weeks ago.Clyde Coastguard was closed for good on 18th...
View ArticleOban lifeboat in rescue of canoeist from Loch Leven – in silence from MCA on...
Oban lifeboat was on a shout to Loch Leven at 14,30 on Saturday 26th April when an over-turned canoe was reported seen two miles from Kinlochleven at 2.30pm.Coastguard Rescue teams from Fort William in...
View ArticleCoastguard understaffing issue even more serious than thought
A Freedom of Information from a national newspaper has revealed that Aberdeen Coastguard has been 33.3% understaffed for a year – from April 2012 to March 2013.It should have an establishment of 36...
View ArticleNew major financial issue, supposing Scotland voted ‘Yes’ to independence
What follows is an indicative picture of the ‘limbo’ period between a hypothetical ‘Yes’ vote and Independence Day – and a question to which we can find no immediate answer.19th September 2014,...
View ArticleStaff shortages in new model coastguard service raise safety issues
The Coastguard SOS campaign group continues to raise concern about risks to sea safety and environmental protection resulting from substantial understaffing in the national coastguard service. This is...
View ArticleOpen minded new Transport Minister offers hope to Coastguard SOS campaign
After beating their heads and laying their evidence out before a series of uninterested short-stay Shipping Ministers, some of whom represented landlocked constituencies and had no personal...
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