Draft Merchant Shipping (Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping) Regulations 2022
(2 years ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Mr Richard Holden)
I beg to move,
That the Committee has considered the draft Merchant Shipping (Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping) Regulations 2022.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Vickers. The purpose of the statutory instrument is to implement into UK law important amendments to the 1978 international convention on the standards of training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers, to make further provision for the approval of training providers, including powers to remove that approval, and to make provision to allow the Government to charge for those approvals.
The STCW amendments came into force internationally on 1 January 2017 and 1 July 2018, and the draft regulations were laid before this House on 31 October 2022. They revoke and replace the current regulations implementing the convention—that is, the Merchant Shipping (Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping) Regulations 2015—thereby restating existing regulatory provisions in this area and also making new provision.
The draft regulations will be made under the safety powers conferred by the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, as well as the prevention of pollution powers contained in the Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Pollution) (Law of the Sea Convention) Order 1996. The draft regulations also make amendments to the Merchant Shipping (Fees) Regulations 2018. This enables fees to be charged for the approval of training providers. The draft regulations are subject to the enhanced scrutiny procedures under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as they revoke the 2015 STCW regulations, which were made under section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972. The draft regulations do not implement any EU obligations.
Before continuing, I should like to provide some background to the convention and outline the Government’s reasons for wanting to implement the amendments to it. The International Maritime Organisation adapted the STCW convention in 1978 and it came into force in 1984. The IMO is a specialised agency of the United Nations and is based here in London—I had the pleasure of addressing a large portion of its membership last week—and it is responsible for facilitating the development of international rules of for shipping. The convention of the STCW code, which is an integral part of the convention, set the standards of competence for seafarers internationally. Human error is recognised as the cause of a large percentage of maritime casualties and pollution incidents, and the convention aims to help tackle that problem by setting out minimum standards of knowledge, experience and professional competence for seafarers.
The UK is a member of and home to the IMO and a signatory to the convention, to which there are a further 164 parties, estimated to represent more than 99% of global shipping. Being a party to the convention allows the UK to issue internationally recognised seafarer qualifications, thereby enabling UK seafarers to work on ships that operate internationally. Since its entry into force in 1984, there have been a number of revisions to the convention. The latest amendments came into force on 1 January 2017 and 1 July 2018. As a party to the convention, the UK is required to implement the amendments into UK law.
The STCW convention amendments being implemented in the draft regulations relate to seafarer training for those serving on ships under the international code of safety for ships using gases or other low-flashpoint fuels—known as the IGF code—and those on passenger ships. These specialised ships require additional training and certification to demonstrate competency appropriate to the responsibility of a seafarer on board the vessel. This will allow United Kingdom seafarers to take up employment on these particular ships.
The improved regulations will enhance the employment opportunities for UK seafarers by ensuring a modern training and certification structure that reflects the current and future needs of shipping. This includes by clarifying the definition of “seafarer” to ensure that all persons, including non-employed crew, who are engaged in the operation or navigation of a pleasure vessel of 24 metres or more in length, or of 80 gross tonnage or more, are subject to the regulations; clarifying the position of the Secretary of State in relation to the approval of training providers, as well as the right to suspend or cancel the approval; introducing a charge for the approval of training providers to ensure that the Maritime and Coastguard Agency can approve and monitor training providers that deliver the training required by the STCW convention, in line with the principle of public authorities recovering moneys spent on services that would otherwise fall on the taxpayer; and providing powers to approve equivalents and alternative certification, as permitted by the STCW convention.
The enhancement of safety through the improvement of the regulatory regime for seafarers’ training will complement the Department for Transport’s nine-point plan to support seafarers and introduce new powers to protect maritime workers. The draft regulations are further required to allow the UK to grow its high-quality seafarer training brand worldwide, while supporting the Government’s Maritime 2050 strategy to support quality training initiatives that raise the standards for seafarers across the globe and that are beneficial to the United Kingdom.
The Government fully supported the development of the STCW convention amendments in the IMO, and the UK shipping industry was consulted throughout their development to ensure that they are modern and fit for purpose. The Government’s proposals for implementing the convention amendments and additional regulatory provision by way of this statutory instrument were subject to an eight-week public consultation. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency refined the proposals based on the comments received, but no substantive changes were required.
I have highlighted the importance of the draft regulations so that we can implement the important amendments to the STCW convention for seafarers to ensure continued compliance with the convention and to improve the regulatory regime by raising standards of training and education. Ensuring a pipeline of highly trained seafarers to meet the demands of the UK’s maritime industry is a vital part of our nation’s economic and strategic needs. I trust that I have cross-party support for the draft regulations, which allow the United Kingdom to play its part in leading the world in seafarer training and education. I therefore commend the statutory instrument to the House.
Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)
As ever, Mr Vickers, it is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, as it was to talk before the start of the Committee about all things relating to the mariners and Grimsby Town. I thank the Minister for his explanation—that quick Wikipedia tour of the history of the International Maritime Organisation—in which, without blushing, he did not mention P&O once. We do need to train up some British seafarers, but I shall come to that later in my speech.
We support the statutory instrument. The implementation of the amendments to the standards of training, certification and watchkeeping regulations will ensure that seafarers on specialised ships can undertake the required additional training and be issued with the necessary certification to demonstrate the appropriate level of competency. This will allow United Kingdom seafarers to take up employment on specialised ships. Furthermore, implementation will also ensure that training providers approved by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency on behalf of the Secretary of State can train and certify United Kingdom seafarers and those outside the United Kingdom as well.
The maritime sector is responsible for transporting 90% of global trade and supplying the world with food, fuel, medicines and goods. The training and development of the world’s 1.9 million seafarers is key for shipping as we move away from conventional fuels and transition towards alternative low and zero-carbon fuels and technologies. I was pleased to see the announcement earlier this month at COP27 regarding the green shipping corridor between the US and Norway and the Netherlands.
We know the value of highly skilled seafarers. Earlier this year, P&O Ferries sacked 800 staff without notice. We all remember the ships stranded with agency staff on board—agency staff who were, in many cases, unskilled and inexperienced. One such incident involved the European Causeway, a passenger ferry that can carry up to 410 passengers. When it suffered a total power failure 5 miles off Larne in County Antrim, three lifeboats were scrambled to its aid, along with a tugboat. Two and a half hours later it was escorted to port; it was only the good weather in the Irish sea that averted a serious incident.
Before entering service, all ships previously staffed by skilled P&O seafarers were required to undergo a full safety inspection before being operated by the new agency crew. The European Causeway failed its first inspection with 31 separate safety deficiencies, including life-saving appliances found to be “not as required” and incomplete emergency systems.
It is unconscionable that anybody with responsibility for safety at sea is not trained. Regulation 27 is headed:
“Safety familiarisation, basic training and instruction for all seafarers”.
Who is responsible for bearing the costs of the outlined seafarer training? The cost of some such courses runs into thousands of pounds. Some seafarers are paid just £5.50 an hour. It is no good having a nine-point plan if nobody acts on what is happening on our sea highways. There are responsible employers who want highly skilled and trained seafarers, but that is not the norm and there is no mandatory requirement or scope within the statutory instrument to make it incumbent on them. Surely training seafarers in safety is in everyone’s best interests. If Members will pardon the pun, we do not want to miss the boat on this. We must be as committed to a just transition as we are to decarbonisation and the move to green fuels in the industry.
I note that the Maritime and Coastguard Agency has commissioned further research into the use of onshore simulators to train officer cadets. That also applies to ratings, as they too have watch duties. Will the Minister apprise me of the research into onshore training being equivalent to sea-time training? I know that it has attracted significant opposition from some within the industry, and in principle we support the proposal of trialling it and assessing the results to determine whether it should be made permanent. Some idea of timescales for that research would be helpful.
In the explanatory memorandum, I notice that the estimated cost of the impact on business, charities and voluntary bodies is £1.6 million. Is there a breakdown of how that is split and how charities, voluntary bodies and small businesses might afford it? The Opposition support any steps taken to improve the conditions and safety of seafarers. We would like Government to go further and commit to improving pay and conditions for seafarers across the board. We have made the case, time and again, for a just transition. Without a just transition, many workers will lose their livelihoods. In the case of maritime, many have spent a significant proportion of their life employed at sea and will not have the ability to work in the evolving professions. We will not oppose the statutory instrument, and I look forward to the Minister’s response.
Mr Holden
I thank the hon. Member for Wythenshawe and Sale East for his comments. It was a bit of a whistle-stop tour of some of the highlights of the IMO. Unfortunately, Wikipedia does not include my fabulous speech to many of the countries that were there last week. We touched on many of the points that he talked about, particularly how we, alongside France and Costa Rica, are leading the way in decarbonisation and green highways across our seas. I hope that we can build that international coalition to ensure that it becomes the norm over the next few years.
I am happy to write to the hon. Gentleman about research into onshore training. It has been well used in things such as aviation simulation for the training of pilots, and I will happily write to him with specific information on the training of seafarers. Obviously, it be paid for by the sector and the businesses involved, but funding is available—up to 50% of the cost—for those training ratings and cadets. On the broader issues around P&O, he will know that we await the Second Reading in this House of the Seafarers’ Wages Bill. I look forward to speaking to him on Second Reading in the not too distant future. I hope that I have answered his points as fully as I can. If I have missed anything out, I urge him to write to me.
It is important that we implement the amendments to the convention into UK law, and make important improvements to the regime for the training of seafarers. That is necessary and desirable, especially given the responsibility that seafarers have for the safety of themselves and others and the protection of the marine environment, and the Government’s commitment to leading internationally on the safety and decarbonisation of the seas. It is right to implement the draft regulations as soon as is practical.
Question put and agreed to.