Hurling accusations of traitor at lifeboat crews is against British values - Andy Brown

The Yorkshire coast can be a treacherous place. On a good day the waves slide in gently and it is safe to swim and sail. On a bad day the waves are overpowering even for experts and it is very dangerous to leave the shore.

When things go wrong we depend heavily on the lifeboat service. The stations have a proud history with the Whitby one having been established in 1801. Those who volunteer to staff it are well aware of the dangers and know that even with the best modern equipment the work they do can never be entirely safe.

Back in 1861 the job was even more risky. A great storm broke out that wrecked more than 200 ships and the crew rowed out into it five times to bring back men from stricken vessels. On their 6th trip the storm overwhelmed them. 12 drowned. People standing on the shore watched as a giant wave overturned the lifeboat. The only survivor was wearing a newly designed cork lifejacket.

That part of the story is tragic enough. What happened next beggars belief. The public clubbed together to raise £8,000 to support the widows and the families of those who had sacrificed their lives. With incredible arrogance the trustees of that fund decided that if the families were given the money it would result in them getting ideas above their station. Most of the money was spent on a memorial instead of on helping those who had lost their prime source of income.

These days the RNLI is in charge of the money and does a great job of making sure every penny is used for the intended purpose. Thanks to donations from the public the Whitby station has an all weather lifeboat built in 2023 and there are eight lifeboat stations situated along the Yorkshire coast.

There are many words that could be chosen to describe the work of those who give up time and accept risks to staff those boats. Selfless, brave, noble and caring are some of those that come to mind. Traitor doesn’t feature remotely in the choice of words that any decent person would use to describe them.

The volunteers have every right to be regarded as the best of us and to accept our gratitude for the great work they do on behalf of the community. What kind of British patriot would choose to denigrate their work and leave them scared to tell people where they live or work in case they get attacked?

The job of those who save lives at sea is to do exactly that regardless of whose lives it is they are saving. It is the job of governments to control who is moving in small boats across the channel, not of volunteers who have accepted the same risks as the lifeboat teams in Yorkshire but happen to operate along the channel coast.

There are certain values and behaviours which we would all like to think are associated with being British. Screaming traitor at someone who puts their life at risk to save others is not one of them.

There are some very unpleasant online communities out there where people are being encouraged to adopt deeply inappropriate attitudes and outbid each other on who can incite hatred most fiercely.

Worrying about how to control and manage immigration is one thing. Going so far as to start intimidating lifeboat volunteers because they rescue migrants as well as stranded tourists is completely different. It is the exact opposite of true patriotism to go online and share attacks on people who have long been regarded as the best amongst us.

At our best, the British people have a great sense of humour, look out for others in need and value people for the strength of their character, not the colour of their skin or how many generations it has been since their ancestors migrated here.

We are a country that has a proud record of standing firm against far right activists who have tried to stir up hatred. Those who gave their lives in the Second World War to put an end to fascism knew well what race hatred can lead to.

The death camps and industrial slaughter of entire populations of Jewish and Romany people would never have been possible if ordinary decent people had stood firm against the early stages of race hatred and dehumanisation of others.

The war generation witnessed the realities of where far right ideologies can lead and came to the conclusion that we must never let anything similar happen again.

It betrays that war generation and every good thing that it means to be British to hurl accusations of traitor at lifeboat crews who refuse to let people drown regardless of why they are in trouble on the high seas.

If we want our own generation to genuinely reflect our country’s proudest traditions then we should recognise those who attempt to spread hatred are the real traitors not volunteers in the lifeboat service.

Pleasingly donations to the RNLI have shot up since the accusations began. The decent British public clearly continues to value their work. Rightly so.

Andy Brown is the Green Party councillor for Aire Valley.