The MCA remembers with pride

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency will be represented at events around the UK to pay tribute to the fallen, including ceremonies in London and Southampton on Remembrance Sunday 2022.

Interim Chief Executive, Damien Oliver, will lay a wreath on behalf of the MCA at the Merchant Navy Memorial at Tower Hill in London on Sunday, November 13.

The memorial commemorates the men and women of the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets who died in both World Wars and have no known grave.

It will be the first time Damien has attended a remembrance service on behalf of the Agency.

He said: “We remember with pride all those serving in the Merchant Navy who lost their lives at times of conflict to protect the freedoms we enjoy today.”

While in Southampton, the Agency will be represented as a significant local employer as the city pauses to remember.

Remembrance Sunday commemorations will begin with military contingents and the City of Southampton Albion Band leaving Guildhall Square at 10.35am.

A march will then head towards the Cenotaph in Watts Park where the annual service of remembrance will begin shortly before 11am.

This year Richard Wilson, Head of the Office of the Chairman & Chief Executive at the MCA, is passing on his annual wreath-laying duties because of his upcoming retirement from the Agency.

Instead, Rebecca Humphreys, Executive Support Manager, will attend the Southampton ceremony.

Richard Wilson (pictured in centre in right-hand picture) joining wreath-layers in Southampton to mark Remembrance in 2021. Credit: MCA

Remembrance gatherings will be particularly poignant this year, as they will offer another chance to treasure the reign and service of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

In September, Richard Wilson remembered receiving his OBE from the Queen in 2018. Her Late Majesty made him feel ‘special and valued’ in an experience he will recall ‘forever’.

Reflecting on his years of representing the MCA on Remembrance Day, Richard believes the Agency will never forget its role in paying tribute to the fallen, either.

He added: “The duty, and personal and collective sacrifice of those who came before us, must never be forgotten.

“I know that everyone who serves the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, and its constituent parts, will take time to reflect, as they do every year. We will remember them.”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Five ships detained after inspection following concerns raised about crew welfare

Image
Five out of the six ships inspected today by Maritime and Coastguard Agency surveyors have been detained. The Astoria, Astor, Colombus and Vasco de Gama at Tilbury have all been detained. The Marco Polo at Bristol has also been detained following its inspection. All five are from the same company – Global Cruise Lines Limited. Four of the vessels are flagged with the Bahamas and one with Portugal (Madeira) . Surveyors found a number of expired and invalid Seafarers Employment Agreements, late payment of wages and crews who had been on board for over 12 months. All these are in breach of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) and the ships have been detained for that reason.  Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps said: “The welfare of seafarers is of the utmost importance and we take any reports of safety concerns around crew incredibly seriously. "Following today’s investigation, five ships have been detained and we will not hesitate to continue to use every po...
Read more

Oral exams to be held online under plans from Maritime and Coastguard Agency

Image
Engineering oral exams will commence online from 11 May under new plans announced by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. In addition, the MCA is also actively working on plans to provide an online way of carrying out Deck oral exams. Marine offices will get in contact with candidates who had previously had theirs cancelled to arrange new dates but everyone is being asked not to get in touch while the backlog is cleared. Katy Ware, Director of Maritime Safety and Standards said: ‘We completely understand people are anxious to get their all important exams done but we can’t accept any new oral exam bookings until we have cleared the backlog of those who had theirs cancelled because of Covid-19.’ ‘We will publish a MIN later this month to provide further guidance on accepting new applications for oral exams. The MIN will also provide timelines for the future booking of exams; for those who hold Notice of Eligibilities (NOEs), those who have applied for NOEs and those who are abou...
Read more

Shortlist of bidders announced for the next decade of Coastguard search and rescue aviation

Image
The shortlist of companies being invited to tender for the next generation of search and rescue aviation has been announced by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. From today (10 June), the shortlisted bidders will be invited to tender for the UK Second-Generation Search and Rescue Aviation programme – known as UKSAR2G – to provide HM Coastguard search and rescue helicopters, planes and remotely piloted drones. The UKSAR2G invitation to tender will be issued to these shortlisted bidders to provide their responses by the end of August this year: Lot 1: Rotary, shorter endurance with standard carriage capacity for short range rescue work Bristow Helicopters Ltd EEA Helicopters Operations B.V Serco Limited Lot 2: Rotary; High endurance with larger carriage capacity for long range/multiple casualty rescues Bristow Helicopters Ltd EEA Helicopters Operations B.V. Serco Limited Lot 3: Fixed-wing, manned and potentially unmanned for rapid search, surveillance and pollution identification 2Excel...
Read more