THE CONTRACTS have yet to be signed — so the campaign goes on for Search and Rescue services in North Devon to remain at 24-hour cover.

That's the message from campaign leaders, following an announcement that the MoD had settled on the Soteria Consortium to provide the privatised service from 2012.

They warned that if 12-hour cover was agreed — lives would be lost.

Campaign leader and deputy mayor of Ilfracombe, Bob Thompson said: "Should this go ahead we will be monitoring it very closely because sadly, people will die."

Defence minister Quentin Davies said new helicopters would be 30% faster, narrowing the time-gap for emergency night flights from stations further away, at RNAS Culdrose and RAF Valley on Anglesey.

He said: "If you do the maths, this means that incidents in North Devon and the area covered by Chivenor will be reached just as quickly, if not quicker.

"They will be more efficient than the Sea Kings which do not have the equipment and lighting to allow them to fly over land at night."

Campaigner Ray Woof said: "That's rubbish. He is obviously being fed information which he is repeating without knowing anything about the subject. And his theory of getting to emergencies quickly from further away, just doesn't hold water.

"It's like saying that if you have a cake and you cut out a third of it, you'll still have the same amount of cake! He's talking out of the top of his head.

"How can he say they will get there faster? It's not a question of lives at risk — lives will be lost.

"But this is still two years away and there's an election coming so anything could happen yet."