Comment: No funds from the state? Bloody luxury!

By John Knight, Third Sector, 14 May 2008

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is an integral part of the fabric of British society. But what do we know about it? I found out a bit on a recent working trip to the north-west coast, when I visited the RNLI station at Lytham St Annes. Did you know that in 2006, the RNLI saved more than 8,300 lives, and that this was enabled almost entirely by voluntary income and voluntary labour?

At a time when we are all discussing government funding and independence, this last point struck me. Does the RNLI want government money, I asked myself - and if not, why not? In 1854, Parliament voted to give the RNLI money. In 1869, the RNLI said thanks, but no thanks,...