RNLI Lifeboat Discontinuation Controversy Brought to The House of Commons

It has emerged that on the 14th February, the local controversy surrounding the axing of New Quay RNLI’s all-weather lifeboat was brought to the House of Commons, by the Member of Parliament representing Ceredigion, Ben Lake.

The controversial issue deals with the fact that the RNLI have taken the decision not to renew the all-weather lifeboat for another service in the New Quay area, and instead have chosen to replace the existing vessel with a much smaller one, that is not able to travel as far as the previous vessel and in lesser conditions, at a cost of £214,000. Needless to say, a large group of campaigning residents have criticised this decision. The chairman of the Ceredigion Lifeboat Campaign, Richard Taylor, stated that it was a "poorly considered decision that cannot go unchallenged".

The motion brought forward in favour of the RNLI lifeboat to not be scrapped was supported in the House of Commons by a cross-party group of Welsh MPs, including Liz Saville Roberts, Jonathan Edwards, and David Davies. Importantly, the motion has also received the support of MPs of all major parties.

Among other concerns, the motion stated: “That this House commends the staff and volunteers of the RNLI for their life-saving work around the coat and at sea; is disappointed by the decision to downgrade the all-weather lifeboat provision at New Quay; is concerned that this decision is contrary to the RNLI’s core objective and principles…”. It is clear therefore that the board members and staff at RNLI will now have to reconsider or at least approach this issue from a new, fresh perspective.

Remember that you can still support the Ceredigion Lifeboat Campaign by signing their petition, which has now grown to almost 20,000 signatures – see our previous post for more details.