Marchioness boss wins royal title

A furious row has broken out after it emerged today that the owner of the Marchioness pleasure cruiser, which sank on the Thames killing 51 people, has been appointed as the Queen's new bargemaster.

As part of his ceremonial duties Ken Dwan will accompany the Queen whenever she goes on the Thames and be responsible for her safety on the water.

But his appointment by the Lord Chamberlain's Office was today described by relatives of the victims of the Marchioness disaster as "extremely insensitive".

Mr Dwan, who co-owns Tidal Cruises, the company which ran the doomed cruiser, was heavily-criticised in the public inquiry into the accident.

Margaret Lockwood-Croft, who lost her 26-year-old son Shaun when the Marchioness went down, today spoke out against the appointment. She said: "I find it totally unjust, inappropriate and unacceptable. What next, is he going to be knighted by the Queen?"

Mrs Lockwood-Croft, a member of the Marchioness Action Group, added: "Dwan was severely criticised during the publ ic inquiry into the Marchioness disaster for his company's lack of proper safety procedures, yet here we have the Lord Chamberlain's Office giving him a prestigious position on the river."

The inquiry report by Lord Justice Clark found that Mr Dwan, 57, and his colleague William Ludgrove, 64, were to blame for the fact that their crew were not instructed or monitored.

Both Captain Douglas Henderson, master of the dredger Bowbelle which ploughed into the Marchioness at 1.46am on 20

August 1989, and Stephen Faldo, the cruiser's skipper, were found not to have kept a proper lookout.

The report stated: "It was poor lookout on both vessels. Neither vessel saw the other in time to take action to avoid collision."

Though the report rejected claims Mr Faldo had been drinking on the night of the disaster it said he might have been affected by the fatigue of working long hours.

Francesca Dallaglio, the sister of England rugby star Lawrence Dallaglio, was among those killed when the Marchioness sank near Southwark Bridge during a birthday party.

The title of Queen's Bargemaster goes back to the Elizabethan era. Even today the Queen is still attended by the bargemaster and eight royal watermen during ceremonial river duties. She sailed to the Dome during the millennium eve celebrations.

Mr Dwan, a former Olympic oarsman, set up Tidal Cruises with Mr Ludgrove in 1973. He is also a Junior Warden of the Honorary Company Of Watermen And Lightermen.

The Marchioness Action Group fears his appointment is a reflection of the lack of seriousness over river safety by the authorities. Mrs Lockwood-Croft, of Aldershot, said rules banning drinking or drug-taking while in charge of a craft had still not been put in place, despite repeated government promises.

"It's been continually shelved, although all you would need is a slight amendment to the laws governing other vehicles," she said. "As it is you can still get drunk and be in charge of a vessel without fear of prosecution.

"It's astonishing. The authorities still don't take river safety seriously and still put inappropriate people in positions of responsibility on the river."

The Lord Chamberlain's Office said it would not make any comment on Mr Dwan's suitability for the post.