Dear Marianne, I hope this finds you well, and enjoying the festive season. We were in contact a few weeks ago, after you wrote to Rosie about your petition to get CCTV cameras on P&O passenger decks. You might remember that Rosie wrote to The Right Honourable John Hayes CBE MP, the Minister responsible for maritime matters, calling for the issues to be raised and discussed in Parliament. We have since received a response from The Rt. Hon. Hayes, but the outcome is, regrettably, not what we had hoped for. Hayes explained that, although his Department (including Maritime & Coastguard Agency) take passenger safety very seriously, they believe that the current regulations are proportionate and appropriate. He also suggested that decisions regarding CCTV are best left to particular operators to consider in the context of their specific risk assessments. We regret deeply the response that we received, and it is with a heavy heart that we have to communicate this news to you – not least because we understand that this response is not true to your personal experience. We hope that you do not feel your extraordinary efforts and successes with your petition have been (to any extent) invalidated by this outcome. The awareness that you have raised is outstanding, and we were heartened to see that Norwegian Yacht Voyages are taking specific measures to install appropriate CCTV and infrared features on their new passenger ships. Of course, such retrospective measures are no compensation for the great loss you and your family have endured, but it says a lot about the impact your petition has had. We really hope that other companies will follow suit, and the more that this issue is made public, the more likely such positive outcomes will be. As such, we would like to reinforce our admiration for the awareness you have raised, and express our condolences that our correspondence with the Department were not satisfactory. Please do let us know what your plans are for the next stages with your petition – or perhaps you do not have any for now. Either way, do not hesitate to get in touch if you think we might be able to help – with this issue, or anything else. Kind regards, Saskia Barnard Office of Rosie Duffield MP Canterbury, Whitstable & The Villages