Geldof's flotilla 'will put lives in danger'

Major safety fears were raised today over Bob Geldof 's call for protesters to travel en route to the G8 summit by boat.

Shipping officials said lives could be lost if boat owners respond to his plea to " recreate Dunkirk" by ferrying anti-poverty marchers bound for the Edinburgh meeting across the Channel.

Geldof urged owners of small vessels to bring European marchers across the Channel. But experts today raised fears of a serious or fatal accident if a large number of small craft - many skippered by amateurs - try to cross the world's busiest waterway.

One industry source recalled 2002's Tricolor incident, in which a large vessel was sunk after colliding with a small, low- visibility craft.

"Some ships have difficulty missing sunken carriers, let alone small yachts," he told Lloyd's List.

The Maritime and Coastguard Authority is said to be furious at Geldof 's Sail 8 campaign. He claimed that "the MCA has been contacted and we have arranged for a special shipping lane to be closed off."

But MCA of ficials today insisted this is not the case, saying that neither Geldof nor anyone from his team had approached them on the issue.