THE Medway Queen paddlesteamer, the heroine of the Dunkirk beaches now mouldering in a creek at Kingsnorth, near Rochester, has found a pool of new allies.

Members of Parliament are springing to her aid by urging her inclusion on the list of BritainÕs most important ships.

Chatham and Aylesford MP, Jonathan Shaw, has tabled an early day motion in the House of Commons calling on the National Historic Ships Committee to reconsider its decision and place her in the A list of historic vessels. He says such a move would open up the way to large sums of lottery funding.

And Chris Pond, the Gravesham MP who has signed the motion in the Commons, said: "The Medway Queen paddlesteamer is the only remaining estuary paddlesteamer in the UK and should therefore be preserved."

He said the fact that she had also rescued 7,000 allied troops during the Dunkirk evacuation made it imperative that the listing was reconsidered.

Several other north Kent MPs have signed the motion. They include Gillingham MP Paul Clark and Bob Marshall-Andrews of Medway.

They have all said they believe that the Medway Queen Preservation Society's ambitions to fully restore her to her former glory would be greatly advanced if she was allowed to be added to the list.

It's been estimated that more than £4 million will be needed to restore the Medway Queen to full working order. The ship is currently in Damhead Creek at Kingsnorth, where she has sunk at her moorings on a number of occasions.