Cruise line pulls out over safety

A cruise company has cancelled all of its services out of Liverpool from the middle of next year.

Fred Olsen will not operate in the city from June 2011, despite nearly selling out nine cruises this year.

The company has said it is because of safety concerns about bringing the 28,000-tonne Boudicca liner into Bootle's Langton Dock.

A spokesman said bringing the liner through Langton Lock was too dangerous in high winds.

Nigel Lingard, Fred Olsen Cruise Lines marketing director, said the problems would be resolved if they could use the Pier Head terminal instead.

"The fact is that the current arrangements aren't secure for us," he said.

"We are operating out of a dock that is through a lock, that is difficult to get access at times if the weather's poor and that has great potential to disrupt our cruise programme."

Mr Lingard said Fred Olsen had not completely ruled out sailing from Liverpool again in the future.

"We want to reach a situation where we can get a more satisfactory long-term plan between us, and hopefully we'll be back then," he said.