Merchant Shipping (Ship-to-Ship Transfers) Regulations 2010

Mike Penning Excerpts

Wednesday 30th March 2011 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Mike Penning)]

I wish to inform the House of a further development concerning the Government’s legislation to regulate, ship-to-ship transfers of oil carried as cargo.

In July-September 2010, a review of the Merchant Shipping (Ship-to-Ship Transfers) Regulations 2010, SI 2010 No. 1228, was conducted in view of concerns expressed about those regulations.

The Merchant Shipping (Ship-to-Ship Transfers) (Amendment) Regulations 2010, SI 2010 No. 1769, delayed the commencement provisions of SI 2010 No. 1228 for six months (ie. so that the earliest date any of its provisions would come into force was 1 April 2011), to ensure the provisions of SI 2010 No.1228 did not come into force before the completion of the review.

Amending regulations have been drafted, and work is in train to ensure that these amending regulations take account of representations made. However, consideration of the impact of these regulations on business will take time and is unlikely to be completed until May at the earliest.

Accordingly, I am laying before the House a Statutory Instrument which will delay the commencement provisions of SI 2010 No. 1228 for a further six months (until the next common commencement date, which is 1 October 2011), to ensure that the provisions of SI 2010 No. 1228 do not come into force on 1 April in their unamended form.