Stop saving lives ... it's against health and safety regulations

POLICE in Glasgow have been banned from calling on the services of a national hero honoured by the Queen for dedicating his life to saving people from the River Clyde.

It emerged last night that a memo has been sent out by Strathclyde Police telling officers not to use the services of George Parsonage, 61, of the Glasgow Humane Society, who has saved an estimated 1,500 people from drowning in the river over the past two decades, because of health and safety fears.

Ironically the announcement came as Mr Parsonage was yesterday presented with a lifetime achievement award from the Royal Humane Society for saving so many lives. He also has a clutch of awards for bravery and was made an MBE by the Queen in 1999 for his work.

A spokeswoman for Strathclyde Police confirmed yesterday that after hearing that Mr Parsonage, who is based at the river on Glasgow Green, was working alone after his assistant left, the force decided it could no longer call on him for help.

She said: "I can confirm a memo has been sent out saying that police are no longer able to call on Mr Parsonage for rescue and recovery work. Should the Glasgow Humane Society appoint a suitably qualified person as an assistant we will review our position."

It is understood that the decision not to use the highly respected rescue worker was taken at the end of last month following a meeting with representatives from the police, the fire brigade and Glasgow Humane Society.

Mr Parsonage, who last night received the lifetime achievement award from Princess Alexandra in London, has worked for the society since he took over from his father Ben in 1979. The volunteer and his father, who also rescued more than 1,000 people from the Clyde, are so famous in Glasgow that they even have a street named after them, Parsonage Row in the Merchant City.

Yesterday, Mr Parsonage insisted that he would still rescue people from the water if alerted by the public. He said: "The police won’t call me. But if a member of the public calls and there’s someone out in the river, I’ll be out there. If I see someone, I’ll go. It’s going to be very, very difficult. The people of Glasgow are used to a service. You must look at health and safety, but I question some of the practicalities."

Last night, Ken Munro, a Glasgow builder, who was rescued by Mr Parsonage during a boating incident, paid tribute to him.

"This is George’s life on the river here rescuing people. I’m not saying it’s what he enjoys doing but it’s what he does and he’s the best at it, he’s made a lifetime out of it and it is astonishing that the police are refusing to deal with him."

Mr Parsonage’s fame even goes beyond Glasgow. Ten years ago civic leaders in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, set up their own rescue service along the River Foyle modelled on the Glasgow Humane Society’s.

Based at Glasgow Green since 1790, the Humane Society is the oldest organisation of its kind in the world. It was established after Glasgow merchant, James Coulter, donated 200 to buy a lifeboat to rescue drowning people and recover bodies from Glasgow’s rivers.

Over the years the main cause of people falling into the river has changed. At one stage it was people trying to cross the waters, later on, when shipbuilding was at its height, it was people falling off boats.

Mr Parsonage, who has lived at the Glasgow Green base of the Humane Society since he was born and has been pulling people from the river since he was 14, still rescues scores of people from the Clyde.

But now most are drunks or drug addicts who have lost control of their faculties.