CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save Swansea Coastguard have been banned from circulating a petition at the DVLA.

Swansea's coastguard station is set to close under government plans, despite being the busiest station in Wales, and one of the busiest in the UK.

Union bosses claim management at the DVLA, which employs around 5,000 people at its offices in Clase, issued "furious" instructions to staff after finding a copy of a petition to save Swansea Coastguard in its Morriston Sports and Social shop.

Mike Hallinan, industrial officer with the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, said: "It is completely over the top for DVLA management to try and stop staff from supporting an issue that everyone in the community of Swansea is concerned about."

A DVLA spokesperson said: "The DVLA declined the request from a local PCS representative for the circulation of a petition against the proposed closure of the local coastguard station as it is not the DVLA's policy to permit political campaigning which is against government policy on government premises."

Around 200 people attended a packed public meeting to discuss the future of Swansea coastguard at Oystermouth Primary School on Friday.

Swansea coastguard and PCS member Steve Matthews told them of one potential consequence of the proposed changes to the service.

"If Milford Haven station is busy, and the Solent station is too busy, the shift manager will have to find a quiet station to deal with an incident.

"It could be Shetland or Stornoway that it is co-ordinated from there. It might not happen often, but it could."

The importance of the local coastguard station was indicated by Mumbles Lifeboat crew member Russell Davies at the weekend.

He said they had to rescue two fishing boats in one hour on Saturday afternoon.

"The first vessel was difficult to track down but fortunately Swansea coastguard could see the fishing boat in trouble from the station," he said.

rupert.hall@swwmedia.co.uk