Written question asked by Gwyneth Dunwoody (Labour), in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 18 November 1996. It was answered by John Bowis (Conservative) on Monday, 18 November 1996 on behalf of the Department of Transport.

Dept of Transport

Question: What proposals he has to issue deregulation orders relating to crew accommodation aboard merchant ships.

Answer: Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals he has to issue deregulation orders relating to crew accommodation aboard merchant ships. [4114] Mr. Bowis: Current Merchant Shipping (Crew Accommodation) Regulations have been considered in the context of the regulatory review of merchant shipping legislation. The aim has been to remove material which is over-specified and unnecessarily detailed, so far as is consistent with safety and with international treaty obligations which, in this case, are International Labour Organisation conventions 92 and 133. The Marine Safety Agency has recently undertaken formal consultation with the shipping industry on the draft Merchant Shipping (Crew Accommodation) Regulations 1996. These are not intended to reduce the present standards of accommodation or to remove provisions which go beyond the requirements of ILO conventions but to make the regulations more flexible and to make it possible for new solutions to be sought to current problems whilst maintaining existing standards of accommodation.

Secondary information