UK Offence Report

Mandatory minimum requirements for the training of hovercraft personnel.

regulation 22(4) of The Merchant Shipping (Training and Certification) Regulations 1997

This offence was read from the text as made, and no revised version was available, so a later revocation could not be ruled out. Check the current text at legislation.gov.uk.

What the provision says

4 Any owner who contravenes paragraph (2) above shall be guilty of an offence, and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or on conviction on indictment, to a fine.

Text as made, from legislation.gov.uk. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.

Who it binds, and what has to be proved

Binds
an owner
Conduct
contravening a requirement of the instrument
Fault element
Strict liability
Burden of proof
No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove that the conduct happened. This is a strict liability offence as drafted: the provision uses no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence, so there is no need to show that an owner meant to do it, knew about it, or was careless.

Intention, knowledge and carelessness are irrelevant to guilt. They may still matter a great deal to sentence.

The provision states no defence, so the prosecution bears the burden on every element of the offence.

Classifier’s reasoning: no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence in the offence or its provision.

What would breach regulation 22(4)?

These are illustrations, not law. They are generated from the provision’s own words to show the shape of the offence. Whether any particular conduct is caught depends on the full text, on any amendment since, and on the facts.

  1. On these words an offence is committed where an owner contravenes paragraph (2) above.
  2. Doing the thing the provision prohibits under the Merchant Shipping (Training and Certification) Regulations 1997, whatever the reason for doing it.
  3. Where the requirement is a positive duty, letting the time for performing it pass without performing it.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
£5,000
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

expressed as the statutory maximum (the prescribed sum): the same words mean £5,000 in England and Wales and £10,000 in Scotland.

Sentencing

Offences of this kind are usually sentenced under the guidelines below. This is a mapping by subject, not a finding about this provision, and the links go to a search of the Sentencing Council’s own site.

Prosecution figures

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision, and it could not be matched to a Ministry of Justice offence code. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have one. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status
Status not determined
Made
14 February 1997
In force from
13 March 1997
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: read from the text as made; no revised version available, so later revocation could not be ruled out.

What the instrument is for

(This note is not part of the Regulations) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

These Regulations give effect in part to the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) for Seafarers', 1978, as amended on 7 July 1995. The Regulations revoke the Merchant Shipping (Certification of Deck Officers) Regulations 1985 and the Merchant Shipping (Certification of Marine Engineer Officers and Licensing of Marine Engine Operators) Regulations 1986 and other related Regulations. Provision is made for the continuing validity of certificates of competency issued under those Regulations (regulation 1). The Regulations give effect in relation to qualified officers to Council Directive 89/48/EEC (O.J. No. L19, 24.1.89, p. 16) on a general system of the recognition of higher education diplomas awarded on completion of professional education and training of at least three years' duration, and to Council Directive 92/51/EEC (O.J. No. L209, 24.7.92, p. 25) on a second general system for the recognition of professional education and training to supplement Directive 89/48/EC (regulations 5(4) and 21 in particular). The Regulations set out a new certification structure for merchant ship officers which reflects the requirements of the revised STCW Convention (regulation 4). Provision is made for the Secretary of State to recognise certificates issued by the authorities of other countries which are Parties to the STCW Convention (regulation 5). Persons wishing to hold certificates issued under the Regulations must satisfy the appropriate training and competency requirements specified in Part A of the STCW Code which is annexed to the revised STCW Convention. They must also satisfy any other requirements specified by the Secretary of State. The provisions include minimum training and qualification requirements for seamen working on tankers, or ro-ro passenger ships. There are minimum requirements for the training of personnel on high-speed craft constructed after 1 January 1996 which are ships (regulation 12). Part II of the Regulations (relating to masters and seamen on ships) is made under section 47 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995. The power to make exemptions from Part II of these Regulations is contained in section 48 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, and there are offences provided in sections 47, 49 and 50. Part III of the Regulations (made under section 85 of the Act) contains similar requirements for hovercraft as Part II does for high-speed craft which are ships. The Merchant Shipping Notices setting out the matters specified by the Secretary of State under these Regulations are obtainable from the Eros Marketing Support Services, Unit B, Imber Court Trading Estate, Orchard Lane, East Molesey, Surrey KT8 0BN. (Telephone number: 0181-957 5028). Copies of the revised STCW Convention and the STCW Code annexed to it and the other Codes referred to in the Regulations are obtainable from the International Maritime Organsiation, 4 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7SR.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

How this was identified as an offence

Everything above rests on the judgement that this provision creates a criminal offence, rather than mentioning one. That judgement is made by rule, from the words of the provision, and this is the rule that made it — with a confidence of 0.92.

Basis
the provision says a person is “guilty of an offence”
Confidence
0.92 of 1.00

A provision that states a penalty for an offence created elsewhere can read very like one that creates an offence, and the rules can mistake the one for the other. If the text quoted above sets a penalty for something made an offence by another provision, treat the classification on this page with that in mind, and read the instrument.

Check the source