Inquiries Thames Safety Inquiry ReportedHistoric

Thames Safety Inquiry

Inquiry by Lord Justice Clarke into safety on the tidal River Thames, commissioned after the Marchioness disaster of 20 August 1989.

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Inquiry by Lord Justice Clarke into safety on the tidal River Thames, commissioned after the Marchioness disaster of 20 August 1989. Interim report published 2 December 1999 (Cm 4530); final report dated 22 December 1999 and published to Parliament on 19 February 2000 (Cm 4558). Its conclusions led to the formal investigation into the Marchioness and Bowbelle collision.

Where it stands

Thames Safety Inquiry: Final Report (Cm 4558) was published on 19 February 2000.

ChairLord Justice ClarkeJudge / Judiciary
Commissioned byDepartment for TransportCommissioned by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (John Prescott)
Established20 Sep 1999
Final report19 Feb 2000
Duration5 months
Inquiry report
Historical inquiry (pre-Inquiries Act 2005). Listed for reference; recommendation progress is not actively tracked.

Reports & recommendations

All 12 recommendations →
12 recommendations
This is a historical inquiry. Per-recommendation tracking is not available. See the Legacy & Impact section above.
Checked against sources: 15 Oct 2026

Legacy & Impact

Lord Justice Clarke's Thames Safety Inquiry examined safety on the tidal Thames after the Marchioness disaster. His interim report, published on 2 December 1999 as Cm 4530, made 45 recommendations on river safety. A Department review of progress as at 10 November 2000 recorded that two required no action, 16 had been completed, eight were expected to be completed by the end of 2000 and 12 were ongoing.

The final report, dated 22 December 1999, reviewed why no formal investigation into the collision had been held. Reporting its conclusion to the House on 14 February 2000, the Secretary of State ordered one; the report was published to Parliament as Cm 4558 on 19 February 2000. Following the inquiry's recommendations, the establishment of three RNLI lifeboat stations on the Thames was announced on 22 January 2001.