Hundreds of people took to the sea in Falmouth to call on the G7 summit to take action to protect the ocean.

Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) organised the event which saw almost 1,000 people register to take part.

Armed with surfboards, bodyboards, kayaks, and standup paddleboards they launched en masse into the sea off Gyllyngvase Beach this morning.

With the sun shining there were hundreds of people watching on the beach and cheering the peaceful protest on.

Hugo Tagholm, chief executive of SAS, who was amongst those who donned a wetsuit and took the water, said he was delighted to see such support:

"Everybody wants to show their support for better support for our oceans. There are talks going on in Carbis Bay about the environment and climate change and the ocean must be central to those."

However, the chief executive said that while the protest was needed to ensure their message was getting through he felt that politicians were listening more.

"In the last two or three years we have seen an imperceptible shift – business leaders, politicians are all pulling in the same direction. They know we need to take action, but we need them to be bold about that."

Hugo said that this would be a vital decade for the world's oceans and that it was important that politicians follow through with the required actions.

"Just a few years ago we wouldn't have seen the engagement that we can now get from politicians.

"But we are still in the middle of this pandemic where countries, companies, and politicians have had to work together and collaborate for a common purpose. They have vaccinated millions around the world.

"They need to do the same to tackle climate change – that same collaboration, investment, and urgency is needed now."

It's a similar message to that which was made by HRH Prince Charles when he addressed G7 leaders at the Eden Project and Hugo was pleased to see the patron of SAS promoting the cause, he added:

"His Royal Highness is our patron and I was delighted to speak alongside him at the sustainability conference earlier this week. He has been championing this for decades and we really value him making that point to the G7.

"We need our business leaders and politicians to lead on protecting the future of our planet – we need urgent action to help our oceans."

[H3] Follow the latest updates on our Twitter and Facebook pages. [.H2]