As a Shadow Transport Minister I questioned the Maritime Minister on the crisis facing volunteer Coastguard Rescue Officers (CROs) following a government decision to strip them of longstanding payments after a court judgments. The first duty of government is to keep people safe and that must include our coastline. There seems no sense of urgency on this from government and data revealed by The Times shows in many places over half of volunteers will leave the service or cut their hours. This is a genuine crisis that needs urgency not prolonged reflection from government.
