Mountain rescuers at work in the Lake District

Mountain rescuers at work in the Lake District

Proposed changes by a Government agency could put people’s lives at risk, say mountain rescuers.

Ofcom, the body which oversees radio communications, wants to tighten up the way the radio spectrum is used – a change that could cost rescuers dear. Teams fear any changes will have an effect on how they operate while out on rescue missions.

The bodies which oversee mountain rescue in England, Scotland and Wales are asking their members and supporters to write to Ofcom to make sure the rescue community’s voice is heard. But there is an urgency to the problem – the Ofcom consultation ends on 30 October.

The cause of the concern is Ofcom’s need to ensure the radio spectrum is used efficiently. Market forces have been applied to radio communication, with auctions set up to trade parts of the spectrum and official organisations expected to pay for the use they make of the limited frequencies available. Ofcom’s official jargon for this is Administered Incentive Pricing, and it is taking a fresh look at the whole scheme.

It will come as a surprise to many to learn that when the volunteer mountain rescuers of Britain take to the hills to go to the aid of stricken walkers and climbers, they have radios which use bandwidths allocated to maritime and aircraft users. Normally, they would have to pay to use these parts of the radio spectrum but the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the official Government body which looks after Britain’s coast and seas, picks up the tab.

Mountain rescuers worry that if Ofcom puts the squeeze on the MCA by, for instance, increasing rates for other parts of the spectrum such as radar, the charities which run rescue teams will be forced to pay for their radio use. Even more worryingly, if frequencies are restricted, there could be more cross-channel interference from other users, endangering the lives of both rescuers and casualties.

This would be a particular danger in large-scale emergencies.

Now, the mountain rescue community, its members, families and supporters are being asked to write to Ofcom to support the MRTs’ case. Key concerns are the way radio communication helps teams preserve life, minimise pain and discomfort of their casualties, get injured walkers and mountaineers to hospital more quickly and ensure the safety and wellbeing of the rescuers themselves.

Radio communication is vital for MRTs

Radio communication is vital for MRTs

Radios also ensure search-and-rescue operations are run more efficiently and that lives could be put at risk if costs increase – MRTs have to fundraise to finance their current operations, and any extra costs necessary for radio frequencies may lead to sacrifices in other areas.

Mountain Rescue England and Wales stresses that submissions to Ofcom should be ‘in your own words’. Cut-and-paste missives are likely to be ignored, but grough readers can add their views by sending an email or letter to Ofcom or by filling in an online form. Full details are on the Ofcom site.

The online form has 14 questions, one of the key ones being: “Do you consider that we should discount fees for any particular user or type of user? Specifically, do you consider that there should be a discount for charities whose object is the safety of human life in an emergency?” Presumably, the mountain rescue community would like the discount to be 100 per cent.

The sums involved are hefty: £126,000 per megahertz used.

There is also a threat to start charging more for use of personal locator beacons, which some outdoor users would like to see available for general use. See grough’s feature: should we be able to use distress beacons in Britain’s hills?

The case for exempting mountain rescue teams from the Ofcom squeeze is clear. A document prepared by a rescue insider says: “It is surely immoral to charge those persons who are fulfilling a humanitarian role and are already over-stretched because of increasing casualty rates, new legislation, etc.”

Any changes to the system are due to take place next April. Organisations such as the Royal National Lifeboat Institution are also likely to be affected.