Plaid Cymru MP for Dwyfor Meirionnydd, Liz Saville Roberts has paid tribute to the dedication and professionalism of local search and rescue teams, highlighting their vital role in keeping residents and visitors safe as the summer season approaches.
Speaking during a Westminster Hall debate in Parliament, Mrs Saville Roberts, who is also a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Volunteer Search and Rescue, raised concerns about the growing pressures facing volunteer-led mountain and coastal rescue services across Gwynedd.
She also spoke of her own first-hand experience, having spent time with local mountain rescue teams in Gwynedd, observing training exercises and learning directly from volunteers about the challenges they face on the ground.
Mrs Saville Roberts represents 6 of the 47 volunteer rescue teams operational in England and Wales, namely, Llanberis MRT, Aberglaslyn MRT, South Snowdonia Search & Rescue, Aberdyfi MRT, North Wales Cave Rescue & Northeast Wales MRT.
Liz Saville Roberts MP said:
Mountain rescue and other search and rescue services such as the RNLI are sustained by extraordinary volunteers who give their time, skills and courage to protect others, often in the most dangerous conditions imaginable. In places like Gwynedd, teams such as Llanberis Mountain Rescue, Aberglaslyn Mountain Rescue, South Snowdonia Search and Rescue, Aberdyfi Mountain Rescue, North Wales Cave Rescue and Northeast Wales MRT play an indispensable role, responding again and again to emergencies in some of the most complex terrain in the country. These are not abstract services; they are rooted in their communities and are called upon daily to save lives. Yet these teams are under growing pressure. Demand continues to rise, resources are stretched, and many smaller local rescue organisations operate with precarious funding. While well‑known charities may have national profiles to support fundraising, local teams in Gwynedd rely heavily on donations and volunteer commitment, even as they shoulder an increasing share of the workload. Social media has added a new and troubling dimension to these challenges. Online content can encourage poorly informed risk‑taking, promote unrealistic perceptions of safety, and spread misinformation about conditions in our mountains. This directly increases call‑outs and places additional strain on already stretched teams. If we genuinely value the work of mountain and search and rescue teams in Gwynedd and across the country, we must do more than praise them after the fact. We must recognise the realities they face—financial insecurity, rising demand and the harmful effects of social media culture—and ensure that support is shaped around their needs. Safeguarding these services is not optional. It is a matter of public safety, community resilience and basic fairness to the volunteers who stand ready, day and night, to help others in distress.