S.I. No. 243/2003 - European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) (Amendment) Regulations 2003


I, Dermot Ahern, Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972), and for the purpose of giving effect to Council Directive No. 2001/106/EC of 19 December 20011 , hereby make the following Regulations:

1.            (1)      These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) (Amendment) Regulations 2003.

(2)      The European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 145 of 1998 ), the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) (Amendment Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 557 of 1998 ), the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) (Amendment) Regulations 2001 ( S.I. No. 213 of 2001 ) and these Regulations may be cited together as the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control Regulations 1998 to 2003.

2.       In these Regulations the “Principal Regulations” mean the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 145 of 1998 ).

3.       The Principal Regulations are amended-

(a)      in Regulation 2(1), by substituting for the definition of “Directive” the following:

“ ‘Directive’ means -

(i)      Council Directive 95/21 EC of 19 June 19952 ;

(ii)      Council Directive No. 98/25/EC of 27 April 19983 ;

(iii)     Commission Directive No. 98/42/EC of 19 June 19844 ;

(iv)     Commission Directive 1999/97/EC of 13 December 19995 ;

(v)      Directive 2001/106/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 20011 ;”,

(b)      in Regulation 2(3), by substituting for subparagraph (c) the following:

“(c)     a reference to an Annex by number is to an Annex to the Directive which is so numbered.”,

(c)      in Regulation 6, by substituting for paragraph (1) the following:

“(1)      The Competent Authority shall carry out an annual total number of inspections corresponding to at least 25 per cent of the average annual number of individual ships which entered its ports, calculated on the basis of the three most recent years for which statistics are available.”,

(d)      by substituting for Regulation 8 the following:

“8.      (1)      Where, as the result of an inspection referred to in Regulation 7, an inspector believes that the condition of a ship of a category listed in Annex V, Section A, or of its equipment or crew, does not substantially meet the relevant requirements of a Convention, then, subject to paragraph (2), the Competent Authority shall ensure that an expanded inspection of the ship is carried out by an inspector.

(2)      Without prejudice to regulation 7, an inspector shall not carry out an expanded inspection of a ship referred to in paragraph (1) where at any time during the immediately preceding period of 12 months an expanded inspection of the ship has been carried out by an inspector or Competent Authority, or by an inspector appointed by a competent authority of any other Member State.

(3)      (a)      The operator or master of a ship to which paragraph (1) applies shall communicate all the information listed in Annex V section B, to the competent authority of the Member State of each port visited after a period of 12 months since the last expanded inspection. This information shall be provided at least three days before the expected time of arrival in the port or before leaving the previous port if the voyage is expected to take fewer than 3 days.

(b)      Any ship not complying with subparagraph (a) shall be subject to an expanded inspection at the port of destination.

(4)      Section B of Annex V contains non-mandatory guidelines for expanded inspections.”,

(e)      by substituting for Regulation 9 the following:

“(9)     On completion of an inspection, a more detailed inspection or an expanded inspection, the inspector shall draw up a report in accordance with Annex IX. A copy of the inspection report shall be provided to the ship's master.”,

(f)      in Regulation 10, by substituting for paragraph (3) the following:

“(3)     In the performance of his or her functions under this Regulation, an inspector shall apply the criteria set out in Annex VI. In this respect, the ship shall be detained, if not equipped with a functioning voyage data recorder system, when its use is compulsory in accordance with Annex XII. If this deficiency cannot be readily rectified in the port of detention, the competent authority may allow the ship to proceed to the nearest appropriate port where it shall be readily rectified or require that the deficiency is rectified within a period of 30 days. For these purposes, the procedures laid down in Regulation 12 shall apply.”,

(g)      in Regulation 11, by substituting for paragraph (1) the following:

“(1) The owner or operator of a ship, or his or her representative in the State, shall have a right of appeal against a detention decision or refusal of access taken by the Competent Authority but the lodging of such an appeal shall not cause the detention or refusal of access to be suspended.”,

(h)      in Regulation 14, by substituting for paragraph (2) the following:

“(2)    (a)        All costs relating to inspections carried out consequent to Regulation 12(2) by the Competent Authority shall be charged to the owner or operator of the ship.

(b)      In the case of detention of a vessel for deficiencies or lack of valid certificates as laid down in Regulation 10 and Annex VI, all costs relating to the detention in port shall be borne by the owner or operator of the ship.”,

(i)      by substituting for Regulation 16 the following:

“Release of Information.

16.      The Competent Authority shall ensure that —

(a) the information, listed in Part I of Annex VIII which concerns ships which have been detained in a port or refused access to a port during the previous month, is published at least every month, and

(b) the information referred to in Part I and Part II of Annex VIII, which is available in the information system established under the MOU, called “SIRENAC”, shall be made available to the public as soon as possible after the completion of the inspection or the lifting of the detention, as appropriate.”,

(j)      in Regulation 17, by substituting for “£1,500” in each place where it occurs the following -

“€3,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months or both.”.

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GIVEN under my official Seal

this 11th day of June 2003

Dermot Ahern

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These regulations amend the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations, 1998 to give effect to Directive 2001/106/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 95/21/EC on Port State Control.

1 O.J. No. L019, 22.01.02, p.17-31

2 O.J. No. L157, 7.7.95, p1

3 O.J. No. L133, 7.5.98, p.19

4 O.J. No. L184, 27.6.98, p.40

5 O.J. No. L331, 23.12.99 p 67

1 O.J. No. L019, 22.01.02, p.17-31