Sign the Petition
Graham has backed a national campaign calling on the Government to pay hero Coastguard Rescue Officers and protect Britain’s coastline.
The Save Our Coastguard campaign has been launched by Joe Robertson MP, whose Isle of Wight East constituency includes Bembridge, where former Coastguard Rescue Officer Martin Groom brought the legal case at the heart of the issue.
The campaign is calling on the Government to protect modest payments for Coastguard Rescue Officers, amid fears that planned changes could drive trained volunteers out of the service and put coastal communities at risk.
Graham is supporting the campaign and urging residents in Beverley and Holderness to sign the petition at saveourcoastguard.co.uk.
The Court of Appeal found that Coastguard Rescue Officers could have worker status when carrying out duties for which they could claim payment.
The Government’s proposed response is to remove hourly payments for call-outs, training and related duties from September 2026, moving Coastguard Rescue Officers to a revised unpaid volunteer model.
Graham has seen first-hand how vital the Coastguard is to coastal communities, particularly following the tragedy in Withernsea. He says Coastguard Rescue Officers are often underappreciated despite the difficult, dangerous and distressing work they do.
Coastguard Rescue Officers save lives, protect the coast and support public safety. They respond to cliff incidents, mud rescues, missing person searches, flooding, water-related emergencies and other situations where lives are at risk.
Across the Holderness coast, communities such as Withernsea, Hornsea, Skipsea, Aldbrough, Mappleton, Easington, Kilnsea, Spurn and the villages along the coast depend on trained local people being ready to respond when something goes wrong.
The current payments are modest. Coastguard Rescue Officers do not serve for the money. But the money matters. It helps cover the real cost of leaving work, losing self-employed income, attending training and being away from family.
Graham is warning that removing those payments could make it harder for working people, young families and self-employed people to serve. It could also lead experienced officers to leave, taking with them years of training, local knowledge and operational experience.
Graham said: “Coastguard Rescue Officers save lives, protect our coast and support public safety. The Government must not remove modest payments in a way that drives trained volunteers out and puts local Coastguard teams at risk.
“After the tragedy in Withernsea, I saw again just how important the Coastguard is to our coastal communities. They are there in the most difficult moments, doing work that is dangerous, distressing and often underappreciated.
“They matter. The people who serve matter. The families who support them matter. It is wrong to take them for granted.
“The current payments are not much, but they help make it possible for people to serve. They recognise the real costs of leaving work, giving up family time and responding when lives are at risk.
“If the Government simply removes those payments, it risks pulling the rug from under Coastguard Rescue Officers across the country.
“This is not just a legal technicality. It is about whether coastal communities like ours can rely on the emergency support they need.
“The Government must not respond to a legal problem by creating a public safety problem.
“That is why I am supporting Joe Robertson’s Save Our Coastguard campaign, and I urge residents across Beverley and Holderness to sign the petition.
“The ask is simple: pay our hero Coastguard Rescue Officers and protect our coastline.”
Joe Robertson MP said: “I am grateful to Graham for supporting the Save Our Coastguard campaign.
“Coastguard Rescue Officers protect communities across the country, from the Isle of Wight to the Holderness coast. They should not be financially penalised for responding when people are in danger.
“This campaign is about protecting the service, protecting the people who serve, and protecting the coastal communities that rely on them.”
The Save Our Coastguard petition says: “Pay our hero Coastguard Rescue Officers and protect our coastline.
“Coastguard Rescue Officers save lives, protect our coast and support public safety. The Government must not remove modest payments in a way that drives trained volunteers out and puts local Coastguard teams at risk.”
Residents can sign the petition at:
saveourcoastguard.co.uk
ENDS
Notes to editors:
More detail can be found at grahamstuart.com/SaveOurCoastguard
The Save Our Coastguard campaign has been launched by Joe Robertson MP and is supported by Graham Stuart MP.
Martin Groom is a former Coastguard Rescue Officer from Bembridge on the Isle of Wight.
The Coastguard Rescue Service responds to emergencies including cliff incidents, mud rescues, missing person searches, flooding, water-related incidents and other situations where lives are at risk.
The campaign is calling on the Government to pay hero Coastguard Rescue Officers, protect the future resilience of the Coastguard Rescue Service and ensure that Coastguard Rescue Officers are not financially penalised for responding when people are in danger.
