UK Offence Report

The Merchant Shipping (Medical Stores) (Fishing Vessels) Regulations 1988

UK Statutory Instrument 1988 No. 1547 — creates 2 criminal offences.

2offences created
0recorded in force
0revoked
Made
6 September 1988
In force from
1 November 1988
Extent
Not stated
Subject
Transport: maritime, aviation, rail and harbours
Made under
Act and by section 103(3) of the Medicines Act 1968, Merchant Shipping Act 1979

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations) — published with the instrument by the department that made it. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

These Regulations supersede the Merchant Shipping (Medical Scales) (Fishing Vessels) Regulations 1974. The Regulations apply to all fishing vessels registered in the UK and to unregistered fishing vessels owned by persons resident in or having a principal place of business in the United Kingdom. Every fishing vessel going to sea is required to carry medicines and other medical stores appropriate to the type and length of voyage and the geographical area into which it is proposed to proceed (Regulation 3). Other instruments and appliances already on board a vessel and having the same function as those prescribed by the Regulations may be treated as equivalent for as long as they remain in good serviceable condition. Where a vessel is on a voyage on the date on which these Regulations come into force it may use those medicines and medical stores already on board until it arrives at a United Kingdom port or within six months of these Regulations coming into force (Regulation 4). Medicines and medical stores are required to be of a certain standard (Regulation 5); this includes packaging and labelling (Regulation 6) and storage (Regulation 7). Medicines and medical stores are required to bear a label indicating the date after which the contents should not be used, medicines and medical stores shall be replaced as soon as possible after the expiry date and in any event within 3 months (Regulation 8). Contravention of the Regulations is made an offence by the owner and skipper, punishable on summary conviction by a fine not exceeding £2,000 in the case of the owner and £1,000 in the case of the skipper (Regulation 9). When an offence is committed due to the act or default of some other person that other person shall be guilty of an offence and may be convicted of the offence (Regulation 10). Any ship may be inspected and detained if the requirements of the Regulations are not met (Regulation 11). These new Regulations empower the Secretary of State to issue details of the stores to be carried in a Merchant Shipping Notice, rather than in the body of the Regulations as at present.

Offences created by this instrument

What Parliament said about it

Hansard was searched for this instrument by name and returned nothing. That is the ordinary outcome: an instrument laid under the negative procedure is usually never debated, and becomes law without a word said about it in either House.

How Parliament handled it

Parliament's Statutory Instruments service records procedure from May 2017 onwards, and this instrument predates it. That is a limit of the source, not a statement that nothing happened.

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