Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there has been a recent review into regulations governing ship registration with a view to increasing the number of ships on the UK shipping register; and if so, what was the outcome.

The UK Ship Register (UKSR) Advisory Panel Report, issued in May 2015, recommended that government review the regulations on the registration of ships under the UK Flag to identify changes which will attract ships to the UK Flag, without reducing standards.

An amending Statutory Instrument is currently in preparation to redefine the meaning of an “original document”, clarifying where hard copies of documents must be submitted to allow registration. This aims to improve efficiency within the registration process and enable the introduction of online registration.

Further opportunities to improve legislation in relation to ship registration will be considered as part the wider UKSR transformation programme. However, no proposals have yet been developed.