Feathers ruffled as health and safety red tape stops duck race

A charity duck race has been cancelled because of health and safety rules.

Every Easter Monday crowds of people line Upper Dam in Lymm, Cheshire, to watch more than 1,000 plastic ducks bob along the river.



But the event's popularity has led to its downfall as council officials have ordered organisers Lymm Round Table to close a nearby road on safety grounds.

However, Warrington Borough Council is refusing to fund the closure and the Round Table says it cannot afford to.

The £3,000 cost of closing the road makes staging the event financially unviable, says James Phipps, chairman of Lymm and District Round Table.