Carmichael leads debate in Parliament on cuts to coastguard remuneration

Orkney and Shetland MP Alistair Carmichael has today led a debate in Parliament on changes to the remuneration of coastguard volunteers in which he called for the changes to be paused and demanded that any changes respect the contribution and service given by Coastguard Rescue Officers.

Currently Coastguard Rescue Officers (CROs), which make up the bulk of the Coastguard Rescue Service, are given hourly remuneration for attending incidents and training exercises – approximately £11 per hour. The MCA plans to change these rules following a Court of Appeal judgement earlier this year, which classed responders as “workers” while they were carrying out their duties.

Speaking in the debate, Mr Carmichael said:

“I believe that the changes that are being introduced following on from the recent court of appeal judgement risk hollowing out a crucial emergency service relied on by people in my constituency and in coastal and island communities around the country.  

“I know no CRO who gives their time and skills for the money but the way in which they have received their financial recognition in recent years has enabled them to make their contribution. This is especially true for those who are self-employed but many who are paid by the hour in their day job will lose out financially.  That is something that they knew when they signed up but now we are changing that and expecting them to carry on as previously.  That is not reasonable and it does not respect the contribution that the CROs make.

“It is critically important that the minister should understand what that sense of pride and duty means because I am afraid to say that it is apparent that the senior management in the MCA have no understanding of it at all.  Their handling of this has been heavy handed and disgraceful.

“That is why I make the earnest plea to the minister today to intervene. Pause what is being done, bring in someone from outside the service to examine in short order the way in which these changes have been made and communicated, look at the culture within the service and then work out a way of recognising the work that CROs do in a way that is compliant with the law and respects their efforts.”