Goodwill trip places councillors in cuffs

A TRIO of European councillors who sailed across the English Channel on a homemade raft to deliver a message of goodwill were arrested upon arrival in Britain.

The two Germans and one Frenchman braved choppy seas to make the nine-hour journey from Boulogne to Folkestone on Wednesday.

But the trio, who carried a goodwill message in a bottle from the mayor of the German town of Zweibrucken, had failed to obtain permission from the relevant authorities to cross the busy shipping lane.

The raft was reported to the Coastguard by a passing vessel and the dignitaries were met at Folkestone harbour at 4pm by the Coastguard before being arrested by police on suspicion of endangering life.

The raft, which was constructed of six oil drums and a sheet of wood, contained out-of-date flares, a radio that didn’t work and no life-saving equipment.

Lynn Dockar, manager of the Boulogne and Shepway Co-operation Association, which works to access European funding, was part of the welcome committee at Folkestone.

She said: “In the space of 20 seconds I went from elation at their joyous arrival to deep concern when two very angry Coastguards appeared.”

Ms Dockar was arrested alongside the Zweibrucken councillors, who she named as Gunter Ludvig and Bernard Druker, and Boulogne councillor Claude Allan.

She said they spent about 10 hours in cells before being released without charge.

Ms Dockar said: “They were making a very symbolic journey across the Channel carrying a message of goodwill.”

The trio presented their goodwill message to Shepway District Council chairman George Bunting yesterday.

Mr Bunting said: “We are very pleased to welcome people from Europe and across the world. In this particular case we would advise our friends to use a more orthodox form of transport next time they visit us.”