Four Dorset MPs including South Dorset’s Lloyd Hatton were at Durdle Door on the Purbeck coastline to publicise their campaign to clean up our beaches and coastline, when they were unexpectedly upstaged by none other than Ron the Seal!
Spotting the TV cameras, Ron was keen to get his 15 minutes of fame, choosing to quietly doze in the background while the MPs explained how they were spearheading a campaign for, among other issues, all year round testing of bathing water.
Ron, a grey seal, enjoying the morning on the beach at Durdle Door
One of the TV crews on the beach at Durdle Door
VIP roped off area for Ron
At the news conference on Friday 9th May 2025, along with Lloyd Hatton were Tom Hayes MP for Bournemouth East, Jessica Toale MP for Bournemouth West and Neil Duncan-Jordan MP for Poole, as well as campaigners from Litter Free Dorset and Surfers Against Sewage.
Ron had clearly got an early tip off about the media event, so had settled down on the beach before the cameras arrived, prompting the Lulworth rangers to give him a VIP roped off area so he wasn’t unduly disturbed by selfie hunters.
The campaigners are calling for the Environment Agency to test the quality of the sea water all year round and not just during the summer, as well as highlighting the pollution that litter on our beaches causes.
Durdle Door is a popular beach to visit but parts of it were strewn with litter including food containers, beer bottles and plastic wrappers.
Litter Free Dorset ran its 35th annual Great Dorset Beach Clean in April 2025, visiting a dozen locations over the course of a week including Studland, Swanage, Man o’ War beach and Durdle Door, removing up to 25 kilograms of rubbish from each location.
Dorset’s Labour MPs united in protection of sea quality at Durdle Door Left to right: Tom Hayes MP for Bournemouth East, Lloyd Hatton MP for South Dorset, Jessica Toale MP for Bournemouth West, and Neil Duncan-Jordan MP for Poole
“Need to protect and drive up water quality”
Lloyd Hatton said:
“Durdle Door is one of the most iconic and famous bathing spots in the country and yet we don’t have all year round testing at bathing sites, it only runs from 15th May to 30th September each year.
“We are saying that if you want to know what the water quality is like at our resorts all along the coast in Dorset, we need year-round testing so that we can be certain what is going on with the cleanliness and safety of the water.
“We also know that most of the storm overflows and spills happen in the winter as that’s when the weather is bad and when the infrastructure gets overwhelmed.
“I have come to Durdle Door with Dorset’s three other MPs because we believe that we need to protect and drive up water quality all along our fantastic Jurassic Coast.”
Sea water samples are currently only taken at bathing spots from May 15th to September 30th
“Litter has a hugely negative impact”
Lloyd Hatton added:
“At the moment, we don’t have enough information about what the water quality is like outside the bathing season, which is why it needs to be tested all year round.
“Only then will swimmers, rowers, sailors or anyone else who enjoys being in or on the sea can be certain of the water quality in Dorset.
“We have better technology now when it comes to testing the water, it’s a real game changer and means we can have a much more accurate picture as well as being able to react quickly if there is a sewage spill.
“We also joined up with Litter Free Dorset to help raise awareness of what they are doing, and do our bit to help to reduce the amount of forever plastics and other litter on our beautiful beaches.
“We know that litter has a hugely negative impact on the environment, for local wildlife and marine life, so dealing with the plastics issue along our coast is as important as dealing with sewage spills.”
Lizzie Cresswell of Surfers Against Sewage, is calling for a major reform of the water industry
“Better, more frequent testing”
Water samples were taken near the famous Durdle Door sea dragon rock formation, and several bags of litter were also collected.
Lizzie Creswell of Surfers Against Sewage said:
“We have a citizens’ programme to help people to understand what is in their local waterways, as sewage regularly gets into water and things are not getting any better.
“We are calling for a transformational reform of the water sector and as part of that we are helping communities understand they need better, more frequent testing, all year round and for a wide range of pollutants.
“We think it should happen at all of our beaches, not just those which are designated as bathing waters, we should know what is in the water before we get in, whether as a swimmer, a surfer, a paddleboarder or a kayaker.
“At the moment, samples are only taken from May 15th to September 30th, which the Environment Agency refers to as the bathing season, but people use the sea all year round and regulations need to protect all water users and protect public health all of the time.”
South Dorset MP Lloyd Hatton and Bournemouth West MP Jessica Toale get to grips with cleaning up the beach
“I did struggle with the heat”
The climb down to the beach and back up again is quite a challenge at Durdle Door, so it was fortunate that Lloyd Hatton was in great shape after recently completing the London Marathon run in five hours.
He raised just over £2,000 for a Dorset charity which provides vital support to local military veterans and their families.
Lloyd said:
“On the day of the marathon, the weather was really hot and I did struggle with the heat – dehydration meant you constantly needed water. I will do it again, but not next year!
“I had never run a full marathon before and a lot of it is psychological, but once you know you can run that distance, you start thinking about how you could train a bit better or be smarter during the run to beat your personal best.”
A few journeys up and down the stairs at Durdle Door should help him meet his next training goals!
Swimmers bathe at Durdle Door all year round
Further information
- Find out how to help with beach cleaning on the Litter Free Dorset website
- Lloyd Hatton’s latest surgeries and campaigns are on his Facebook site
- Follow Surfers Against Sewage on its website
