UK Offence Report

Offences and penalties: shipper and forwarder

regulation 32(1) of The Merchant Shipping (Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Harmful Substances) (Amendment) Regulations 2024

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

1 A shipper who fails to comply with—

a regulation 12(1);

b regulation 12(2)(a); or

c regulation 16, is guilty of an offence.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
a person
Conduct
failing to do something the instrument requires
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 a person 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 32(1)?

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 a person fails to comply with— a regulation 12(1); b regulation 12(2)(a); or c regulation 16.
  2. Not doing what the provision requires under the Merchant Shipping (Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Harmful Substances) (Amendment) Regulations 2024, by the time it requires it to be done.
  3. Doing it, but not in the manner or to the standard the instrument specifies.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
Unlimited
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined
Maximum prison (on indictment)
2 years

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
15 May 2024
In force from
11 June 2024
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 implement outstanding amendments to Chapter VII of the Annex to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 (“SOLAS”), relating to the carriage of dangerous goods by ships, and Annex III to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973 (“MARPOL”), relating to the prevention of pollution by harmful substances carried by sea in packaged form. These Regulations amend and substantially replace the Merchant Shipping (Dangerous Goods and Marine Pollutants) Regulations 1997 (S.I. 1997/2367), as well as revoking and replacing the Merchant Shipping (Gas Carriers) Regulations 1994 (S.I. 1994/2464) and the Merchant Shipping (Carriage of Packaged Irradiated Nuclear Fuel etc.) (INF Code) Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/3216). These Regulations apply, with certain limited exceptions, to United Kingdom ships wherever they are (including those engaged on domestic voyages) and to non-United Kingdom ships when in United Kingdom waters or controlled waters (regulation 4). These Regulations specifically make provision to give effect to the incident reporting requirements in Chapter VII of SOLAS and Protocol I to MARPOL, and for this purpose revoke and replace existing corresponding provisions in the Merchant Shipping (Reporting Requirements for Ships Carrying Dangerous or Polluting Goods) Regulations 1995 (S.I. 1995/2498) and the Merchant Shipping (Vessel Traffic Monitoring and Reporting Requirements) Regulations 2004 (S.I. 2004/2110). These Regulations implement all amendments to Chapter VII and Annex III as at the date on which this instrument comes into force. Chapter VII also gives effect to the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (“the IMDG Code”), the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes Code (“the IMSBC Code”), the International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk (“the IBC Code”), the International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Liquefied Gases in Bulk (“the IGC Code”) and the International Code for the Safe Carriage of Packaged Irradiated Nuclear Fuel, Plutonium and High-Level Radioactive Wastes on board Ships (“the INF Code”). These Regulations also therefore give effect to the mandatory requirements in those Codes. All future amendments to the provisions of Chapter VII, Annex III, Protocol I, the IMDG Code, the IMSBC Code, the IBC Code, the IGC Code and the INF Code will be automatically incorporated into United Kingdom law by way of the ambulatory reference provision (regulation 5) made under the power in section 306A of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995. These Regulations provide for the granting of exemptions (regulation 6), the approval of equivalents (regulation 7) and the granting of approvals (regulation 8). Part 2 (regulations 9 to 12) makes provision for the requirements applying in relation to ships carrying dangerous goods and harmful substances in packaged form. Regulation 12 makes specific provision in respect of the duties on shippers and forwarders. Part 3 (regulations 13 to 16) makes provision for the requirements applying in relation to ships carrying dangerous goods in solid form in bulk. Regulation 16 makes specific provision in respect of the duties on shippers. Part 4 (regulations 17 to 20) makes provision in respect of the requirements for the construction and equipment of ships carrying dangerous liquid chemicals in bulk. Part 5 (regulations 21 to 24) makes provision in respect of the requirements for the construction and equipment of ships carrying liquefied gases in bulk. Part 6 (regulations 25 to 27) makes provision in respect of the requirements for the carriage of packaged irradiated nuclear fuel, plutonium and high-level radioactive wastes on board ships. Part 7 (regulations 28 to 30) makes provision in respect of the incident reporting requirements in Chapter VII of SOLAS and Protocol I to MARPOL. Part 8 (regulations 31 to 33) makes provision for control and enforcement. Regulation 31 makes it an offence by the owner and master for a ship to be used in contravention of any of the requirements of these regulations (including the specific requirements in regulations 11 and 15). Regulation 32 makes it an offence by shippers and forwarders to contravene the requirements specified in regulations 12 and 16 respectively. Regulation 33 contains power to detain a ship in cases of non-compliance with these Regulations. Regulation 34 requires the Secretary of State to review the operation and effect of these Regulations and publish a report before the end of the period of five years beginning with the date on which these Regulations come into force and at intervals not exceeding five years after that. Following a review, it will fall to the Secretary of State to consider whether the Regulations should remain as they are, or be amended or revoked. A further instrument would be needed to amend or revoke the Regulations. Marine Guidance Note (MGN) 697(M) provides guidance on how the Secretary of State will exercise discretion where Chapter VII and other international provision permit this. This is available from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) of Spring Place, 105 Commercial Road, Southampton SO15 1EG (telephone 020 3817 2000 and email infoline@mcga.gov.uk) and on https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/marine-guidance-notices-mgns. SOLAS (including its Protocol of 1988) and MARPOL (including its Protocols of 1978 and 1997) may be obtained in copy from the International Maritime Organization (IMO), 4 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7SR and both are available on the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) treaties database (https://treaties.fcdo.gov.uk/responsive/app/consolidatedSearch/). The text of the IMO Resolutions amending SOLAS and MARPOL (including their respective Protocols) may be obtained from the IMO, or on the FCDO treaties database (https://treaties.fcdo.gov.uk/responsive/app/consolidatedSearch/). Future amendments to SOLAS and MARPOL (including their respective Protocols, and the Codes given effect by them) may be obtained in copy from the IMO and, after coming into force in the United Kingdom, found on the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) treaties database (https://treaties.fcdo.gov.uk/responsive/app/consolidatedSearch/). Until such publication is made on the FCDO treaties database, an amendment will be available from the MCA and on https://www.gov.uk. An amendment will be publicised in advance of its in-force date by means of a Written Ministerial Statement to both Houses of Parliament and by way of a Marine Guidance Note, which will be available in copy from the MCA and on https://www.gov.uk. A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private or voluntary sector is foreseen. An Explanatory Memorandum is published alongside the instrument on www.legislation.gov.uk.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

How this became law

This instrument became law without a debate or a vote. Under the negative procedure it took effect unless a motion to stop it succeeded, and none was tabled.

Neither House could have amended it. A statutory instrument is put to each House as a whole thing, to be approved or not; the Houses can reject an instrument or record their regret, but they cannot change a word of it. That is the constitutional position for every offence on this site.

The full procedural history →

What Parliament said

Mentions of this instrument in Hansard. Parliamentary material is reused under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Other offences in the same 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