RNLI costs all at sea

A FRIEND is chairman of the local RNLI and does a lot of fundraising. I have contributed to this charitable organisation that saves lives at sea, using the services of volunteers willing to risk their lives for others.

After the Whitby lifeboat men were sacked over joke mugs, I checked the Charity Commission website and was more than a little surprised at what I discovered. In 2016, RNLI employed 19 staff paid more than £60,000 each; six at £70,000; four at £80,000; another four at £90,000; one at £100,000 and one at £150,000.

These figures dwarf the £52,000 my friend is trying to raise to buy a new rigid inflatable boat. Worse, they indicate yet another charity with an expensive bureaucracy financed from donors’ contributions.

MICHAEL PRICE, Burstwick, E. Yorks.