D-Day looms for 'Boaty McBoatface' with decision due 'very soon'

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A decision on whether to call a new polar research ship ‘Boaty McBoatface’ is expected “very soon”, according to a source.

The controversial suggestion was the runaway winner of a public poll by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) with more than 120,000 votes.

But the official decision is to be made by Science Minister Jo Johnson, who has hinted he will choose a different name for the £200m vessel.

He said previously he wants a name that “captures the spirit of scientific endeavour”, noting that some of the public’s suggestions were “more suitable than others”.

Other suggestions for the ship's name include Endeavour, Henry Worsley, David Attenborough and Falcon, along with humerous ones such as It’s Bloody Cold Here, Ice Ice Baby and Notthetitanic.

The extraordinary public interest in the name – almost entirely because of the success of the Boaty McBoatface suggestion by communication manager James Hand – has prompted the Commons’ Science and Technology Committee to summon the NERC’s chief executive Professor Duncan Wingham to a meeting on 10 May.

The NERC’s ‘Name Our Ship’ competition will be discussed as part of the committee’s inquiry into how to communicate science to the general public.

Professor Wingham and the NERC’s head of communications, Julia Maddock, will also be asked about the research the scientists on the ship will carry out.