Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the SS Richard Montgomery is in their National Risk Assessment; and what guidance has been offered to the relevant local resilience forums about the approach they should take to the risks associated with it.

Whilst the condition of the masts is not believed to have deteriorated seriously over time, the decision to explore reducing the height of the masts was informed by the regular surveys conducted by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency.

There is a dedicated page on Gov.uk for the SS Richard Montgomery where these surveys can be found.

The procurement process to appoint a contractor to remove the masts is still live and while commercial information on the tender cannot therefore be released, further updates on its progress will be given at the appropriate time. The work to remove these masts has not previously been put out to tender. Further details can be found online in the Official Journal of the EU.

The SS Richard Montgomery is not on the National Risk Register. The National Risk Register is managed by the Cabinet Office, who are currently updating this document.

The relevant local authorities and local resilience forums are aware of the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery and routinely factor it into their regular planning work. We are in contact with these organisations regularly to ensure they have the information they need on risks to inform their planning.