Stephen Morgan , Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs and Member of Parliament for Portsmouth South, has added his voice to a campaign for a dedicated Minister for Water Safety in the UK - as new data shows at least 202 people died in accidental drowning incidents across the UK in 2025.
The endorsement lends significant political weight to a campaign that has been building momentum for several years , since the National Water Safety Forum (NWSF), Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) , and the University of Portsmouth first called on the UK government to assign responsibility for drowning prevention, a step already taken by devolved administrations in Wales and Scotland.
The MP's support comes in following a series of high-profile and devastating drowning tragedies that have prompted renewed public concern about water safety.
Despite years of concerted effort by safety organisations, the UK's toll of accidental drowning deaths has remained stubbornly static, with at least 202 confirmed fatalities recorded in 2025 alone , and a further 201 cases where the cause of death is still pending coroner confirmation.
I pay tribute to the University of Portsmouth for their own crucial contributions to this lifesaving nationwide campaign over the years and am calling on Portsmouth people in joining me in sharing this campaign however they can to reach as many as possible.
Stephen Morgan, Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs and Member of Parliament for Portsmouth South
Mr Morgan said: "As an island city, Portsmouth people will understand not only the dangers of being around water but also the importance of knowing how to survive if we do find ourselves in a water emergency.
"These summer months are unfortunately accompanied by higher numbers drowning deaths as more people are drawn to water. The RNLI's Float to Live campaign is crucial to ensuring that everyone is well-equipped to enjoy our beaches and waters safely.
"I pay tribute to the University of Portsmouth for their own crucial contributions to this lifesaving nationwide campaign over the years and am calling on Portsmouth people in joining me in sharing this campaign however they can to reach as many as possible."
The latest figures from the Water Incident Database (WAID) , published by the NWSF in May 2026, reveal a stark picture. Of the 202 confirmed accidental drowning deaths in the UK in 2025, 150 were in England, 39 in Scotland, 12 in Wales and 1 in Northern Ireland.
August was the deadliest month, with 31 deaths, followed by June and July with 27 each, consistent with warmer weather drawing more people to water.
The link between hot weather and drowning risk is now formally recognised at the highest levels of public health. Following sustained campaigning by His Majesty's Coastguard, part of the NWSF, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) heat alerts now include an explicit warning that "water-related incidents may increase, including risks from cold water shock and drowning."
Over 8,000 years of life were again tragically lost in 2025. Behind each drowning is a family devastated by a death that, in many cases, was preventable. The inclusion of drowning risk in official UKHSA heat alerts represents a significant and hard-won policy change - one that illustrates precisely what can be achieved when research, campaigning and government work together.
Professor Mike Tipton, NWSF Chair and co-founder of the University of Portsmouth's Extreme Environments & Occupational Performance Research Group
Research by Professor Mike Tipton from the University of Portsmouth and colleagues - published in the journal Preventive Medicine - analysed nearly 2,000 unintentional drowning deaths across the UK between 2012 and 2019. They discovered that a single degree rise in air temperature was associated with a 7.2 per cent increase in drowning risk, with the danger rising sharply on days above 25°C.
Professor Tipton , NWSF Chair and co-founder of the University of Portsmouth's Extreme Environments & Occupational Performance Research Group , said: "Over 8,000 years of life were again tragically lost in 2025. Behind each drowning is a family devastated by a death that, in many cases, was preventable. The inclusion of drowning risk in official UKHSA heat alerts represents a significant and hard-won policy change - one that illustrates precisely what can be achieved when research, campaigning and government work together."
Scotland's Drowning Prevention Strategy, backed by ministerial leadership, has driven a 10 per cent reduction in accidental drowning fatalities since 2019.
At UK level, drowning prevention and water safety are not part of a coherent ministerial portfolio brief. Partial responsibility of this area is fragmented across multiple departments, making a sustained, co-ordinated national response difficult to achieve.
"The NWSF has members with the knowledge, the campaigns and the collaborative structures to do more - but without a named minister accountable for drowning prevention in the UK, our drowning prevention interventions lack the political support and endorsement that this issue demands," explained Professor Tipton. "Having the Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs and a Portsmouth MP back our campaign is greatly welcome and will hopefully encourage more to follow suit."
Professor Tipton, having named "cold shock" with his colleague Dr Frank Golden in the 1980s, has spent four decades studying the physiological responses to cold water immersion with his colleagues and translating research findings into lessons for drowning prevention, rescue and treatment ("from lab to lifesaving"). Research conducted at Portsmouth's Extreme Environments Laboratories underpins national and international water safety campaigns and lifesaving interventions, including the RNLI's widely recognised " Float to Live " initiative.
The announcement comes as Professor Tipton receives a prestigious honour from the RNLI. The Board of the charity has recently awarded him the title of Honorary Life Governor in recognition of his exceptional services to the RNLI and to drowning prevention.
