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THE SCOTTISH Government has accused "penny-pinching number crunchers" in London of slashing maritime safety north of the border.

Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead was highly critical of Westminster decisions to close coastguard stations in Scotland.

The Nationalist also demanded UK ministers ensure that an emergency tug service continues in Scottish waters.

Mr Lochhead used a Holyrood debate to attack the coalition Government, with Labour's Lewis Macdonald also echoing his concerns.

The Rural Affairs Secretary told MSPs: "Penny-pinching number crunchers in London offices have been busy slashing maritime safety under the guise of modernisation."

He hit out at the Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition for planning to close eight coastguard centres around the UK, including both the Clyde and Forth stations in Scotland.

Round-the-clock centres will be retained at Shetland, Aberdeen and Stornoway but Aberdeen's will be downsized.

Mr Lochhead said: "Safety cover is now being reduced and jobs lost across our maritime emergency services.

"The UK Government's approach has not been properly co-ordinated or strategically thought through, and instead has been based on saving money, not lives.

The Scottish Government, he said, is "extremely concerned and disappointed" about the closure of the Clyde and Forth coastguard centres, adding that the Clyde station dealt with more call-outs than any other station in Scotland last year.

Clyde also has responsibility for "one of the longest and most complex areas of coastline in the UK".

Mr Lochhead warned: "The removal of this local knowledge and the increased workload for other centres could well place lives at risk."

He also said downgrading the Aberdeen coastguard centre has "significant implications", adding: "The station will see an overall reduction in watch-keeping staff whilst seeing an expansion of the coastline it covers."

It is "absurd and potentially dangerous" to downgrade the Aberdeen station while transferring responsibility for major North Sea incidents to a Maritime Operations Centre based in the south of England, "hundreds of miles away at the other end of the country".

After two emergency tugboats were withdrawn from service by the UK Government in September, Mr Lochhead had said this had "also been led simply by a wish to cut costs, not to improve the safety of Scottish waters and those who use them".

The UK Government did secure interim funding for three months to cover the emergency towing vessels when the original contract ended, and a group has been set up to investigate long-term solutions for the tugs.

But Mr Lochhead said the three-month timescale "appears to be over-ambitious" and urged Westminster politicians to "introduce a further extension to the contract to allow the work of the group to be carried out within a more realistic timescale".

He stressed: "There should not be a further break in provision, and we certainly should not be left without cover in the winter months when the current contract comes to an end in January."

Alex Fergusson, Conservative MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, said the Scottish Government had approached the subject with "blind denial" that a review was needed at all.

However, he raised his concerns about the closure of the Clyde and Liverpool stations, both of which cover parts of the coast of south-west Scotland.

He criticised the SNP administration's initial response to the UK Government, which omitted reference to the role played by Liverpool.

Mr Fergusson said: "The Government's motion is what we are slowly getting used to in this session of parliament: a blind denial that any change or review is ever needed or worthwhile unless it is a change or review that is sponsored by the SNP."

He added: "We on these benches totally recognise the concerns over the closure of individual coastguard stations such as the Clyde and Forth.

"Indeed the closure of the Clyde station is of immense concern to my own constituents."

Mr Fergusson said he wants more detail about the resources available to Belfast, which would be responsible for the area covered by the Clyde station.

Tavish Scott, Liberal Democrat MSP for Shetland, congratulated campaigners who saved his local station.

He added: "Changes are difficult and I regret the closure of Forth and Clyde stations. I well understand why local members are angry about that. I would be too.

"But the savings are being ploughed back into achieve one very significant and positive outcome, and that is the terms and conditions of employment for the men and women of the coastguard service."

Mr Scott continued: "We need salvage tugs around the Northern Isles and around the west coast of Scotland, where the shipping market will not deliver a commercial alternative.

"We need the men and women who work for the coastguard agency to be properly treated, with better terms and conditions."