9:10am Saturday 28th November 2009
A patrol boat lauded as the first of its kind to be used by a UK police force has sat unused in a Pembrokeshire boatyard ‘for years’.
The Western Telegraph recently reported how Dyfed-Powys Police had asked for a new vessel to help keep the port of Milford Haven secure.
That request was backed by a committee of MPs, who were concerned about the force’s ability to respond to incidents near the key waterway.
But it has since emerged that the police boat Marilyn Roberts has been sat on blocks in a Neyland boat yard.
One Neyland resident said the boat had been there “for quite a few years.”
It was bought in 1999 when the Police Marine Unit was established “to target Irish and International terrorism” around the Pembrokeshire coast.
The then Home Office Minister Paul Boateng visited Pembrokeshire to launch the vessel, a Delta 115 patrol RIB, with a top speed of more than 30 knots.
Together with a smaller 6m inflatable, the two boats cost £200,000.
But police said that in view of the significant developments in and around Milford Haven, the Marilyn Roberts was no longer “deemed suitable for a number of operational reasons”.
Marine brokers have been appointed to dispose of the boat which is currently being marketed, with final bids expected in January.
A police spokesman added: “Home Office funding is being pursued to enhance the resources of the marine unit, including the acquisition of a more suitable vessel and if successful, will greatly enhance police visibility on the Haven which will in turn bring benefits to the wider community.”
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