Peril on the seas

Mike Penning, the UK government’s shipping minister, and the Marine Coastguard Agency in Southampton risk severe disapprobation from the people of Scotland if the proposed cuts to Coastguard services are implemented.

In the name of efficiency, stations all around our coasts, from the Forth and Clyde estuaries to Stornoway and Lerwick, may be forced to scale down their current 24/7 cover.

Undoubtedly, lives will be lost as a result of this ruthless penny-pinching by people who appear to be unaware of the conditions faced by those who sail in Scottish waters.

To compound the matter, two emergency rescue vessels have been given only three months’ reprieve. These tugs are vital for marine safety off our west coast.

Cuts are one thing. Amputation is quite another.

Alasdair H Macinnes

Granton Road

Edinburgh