Shipping: Passenger Safety

Lord Wigley Excerpts

Wednesday 15th January 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Kramer]

I assure your Lordships that this standard could not apply in winter weather; it is for summer only. It is for boats that are very close to the coast and for small excursion vessels. It is part of an appropriate safety regime to look at how the vessels are being used and to make sure that safety is appropriate to that rather than circumstances in which they cannot be used.

[Lord Wigley (PC)]

My Lords, may I invite the Minister to reconsider her reference to benign waters? Very often, waters that appear benign can rapidly become less benign, and lifeboats are not available at close proximity all along the coast. Can we make sure that if we are erring, we are erring on the side of safety?

[Baroness Kramer]

I can assure your Lordships that, from a UK perspective, this measure meets a very high standard of safety. Both the safety required of the boats themselves and the quality required of the life rafts have been very closely examined. I have learnt in this House that the word “benign” can be wrongly used, but I think that these are generally benign waters.