Fishing Vessels (Safety Provisions) Act 1970
| Year | 1970 |
Fishing Vessels (SafetyProvisions) Act 1970
1970 CHAPTER 27
An Act to make further provision for the safety of fishing vessels.
[29th May 1970]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
1 Fishing vessel construction rules.
(1) The Board of Trade may make rules (in this Act referred to as ‘fishing vessel construction rules’) prescribing requirements for the hull, equipment and machinery of fishing vessels of any description registered in the United Kingdom (including any description framed by reference to the areas in which the vessels operate or the dates on which they were first registered in the United Kingdom or on which their construction was begun).
(2) The Board of Trade may exempt any fishing vessel or description of fishing vessel from any requirement of the fishing vessel construction rules, either generally or for a specified time or with respect to a specified voyage or to voyages in a specified area, and may do so subject to any specified conditions.
(3) A surveyor of ships may inspect any fishing vessel for the purpose of seeing that it complies with the fishing vessel construction rules, and for that purpose shall have all the powers of a Board of Trade inspector under the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 .
(4) If—
(a ) the fishing vessel construction rules are contravened with respect to any vessel; or
(b ) a vessel is, under subsection (2) of this section, exempted from any requirement subject to a condition and the condition is not complied with;
the owner or master of the vessel shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding 400.
2 Fishing vessel survey rules.
(1) The Board of Trade may make rules (in this Act referred to as ‘fishing vessel survey rules’) for the surveying and periodical inspection of fishing vessels registered in the United Kingdom, or any description of such fishing vessels, for the purpose of ensuring their compliance with the requirements of the fishing vessel construction rules, the rules for life-saving appliances, the radio rules, the rules for direction-finders and the rules for radio navigational aids applicable to them.
(2) Section 275 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 (appeals to the court of survey) shall apply to surveys carried out under the fishing vessel survey rules with such modifications as may be prescribed by the rules.
3 Fishing vessel certificates.
(1) If the Board of Trade or any person authorised by them for the purpose are satisfied, on receipt of a declaration of survey in respect of a fishing vessel surveyed under the fishing vessel survey rules, that the vessel complies with such of the requirements of—
(a ) the fishing vessel construction rules;
(b ) the rules for life-saving appliances; or
(c ) the radio rules, the rules for direction-finders and the rules for radio navigational aids;
as are or will be applicable to the vessel, then, subject to subsection (2) of this section, the Board or person shall, on the application of the owner, issue a certificate showing that the vessel complies with those requirements; and for this purpose any requirement from which the vessel has been exempted under section 1(2) of this Act or any other provision of the Merchant Shipping Acts shall be deemed not to be applicable to it.
(2) Fishing vessel survey rules may require, in the case of such certificate to be issued under this section as may be specified in the rules, that the Board of Trade or person authorised to issue it shall not issue the certificate unless satisfied that the vessel in respect of which it is to be issued is provided with the lights, shapes and means of making fog signals required by the collision regulations.
(3) A certificate issued under this section shall be in such form as may be prescribed by the fishing vessel survey rules; and those rules may make provision for the duration, extension or cancellation of any such certificate and for the endorsement on it of information relating to the inspection, in accordance with the rules, of the vessel to which it relates and of any extension of the period for which the certificate was issued.
(4) Sections 280 to 282 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 (delivery up and posting up of certificates and penalty for forgery) shall apply in relation to any certificate provided for by this section as they apply in relation to a passenger steamer's certificate.
(5) Any certificate issued under this section shall be admissible in evidence.
4 Prohibition on going to sea without appropriate certificates.
(1) No fishing vessel required to be surveyed under the fishing vessel survey rules shall go to sea unless there are in force certificates issued under section 3 of this Act showing that the vessel complies with such of the requirements of the fishing vessel construction rules, the rules for life-saving appliances, the radio rules, the rules for direction-finders and the rules for radio navigational aids as are applicable to the vessel.
(2) If any fishing vessel goes to sea or attempts to go to sea in contravention of this section, the owner or master of the vessel shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding 200.
(3) The master of any fishing vessel registered in the United Kingdom shall on demand produce to any officer of customs or of the Board of Trade any certificate required by this Act; and the fishing vessel may be detained until the certificate is so produced.
(4) Where a fishing vessel is detained under this section, section 460(2) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 (which relates to the costs of detention) shall apply as if the vessel had been finally detained under that Act.
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