Safety worries over keepers row

A plan to sell off a third of lock-keeper's cottages by the Environment Agency shows a "cavalier" attitude to safety, a councillor has said.

The Environment Agency said it would sell 10 of its 57 properties along the River Thames as part of cost cutting.

Oxfordshire County Council warned the move could affect emergency flood responses. It approved a motion calling on the agency to review its decision.

The agency said it needed to make sure public money was being spent wisely.

A further 12 properties will be rented out privately as they are no longer needed for "operational reasons", under the plans.

'Out of touch'

The agency said lock-keepers will remain in work. But some people have expressed concerns that a presence will not be maintained 24 hours a day.

Conservative county councillor for Abingdon West, Michael Badcock, labelled the idea "cavalier".

He warned the plan would have implications for the ability of the county's emergency services to rely on lock-keepers at times of flooding.

He added: "It shows just how out of touch the government and its agencies have become with the needs of a rural county."

Of those lock house that will be sold, one is in Oxford, two in Maidenhead, five in Surrey and two in Buckinghamshire.