European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations, 1998.
Statutory Instruments
Source: Statutory Instruments

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paragraphs: (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations, 1998.
(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 15th day of May, 1998.
2 Interpretation.
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paragraphs: (1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"Competent Authority" means the Marine Survey Office of the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources;
"Conventions" has the same meaning as it has in Article 2 of the Directive;
"Directive" means Council Directive No. 95/21/EC of 19 June 1995;
"functions" includes powers and duties;
"inspector" means an officer of the Competent Authority appointed under Regulation 5(1) to be an inspector;
"Member State" means a Member State of the European Communities;
"Minister" means the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources;
"MOU" means the Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control, signed in Paris on 26 January 1982, as provided for in Article 2 of the Directive;
"ship" means any seagoing vessel to which one or more of the Conventions applies, flying a flag of a state other than the State.
(2) A word or expression that is used in these Regulations and is also used in the Directive has, unless the contrary intention appears, the same meaning in these Regulations as it has in the Directive.
(3) In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—
(a) a reference to a Regulation is to a Regulation of these Regulations,
(b) a reference to a paragraph is to a paragraph of the Regulation in which the reference occurs, and
(c) a reference to an Annex by number is to an Annex to the Directive which is so numbered.
3 Application
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paragraphs: (1) These Regulations shall apply to any ship and its crew to which the Directive applies.
(2) Nothing in these Regulations shall affect the rights of intervention available to the State under the relevant international Conventions.
(3) When inspecting a ship flying the flag of a state which is not a party to a Convention, the Competent Authority or an inspector shall not give to such ship or its crew more favourable treatment than that given or to be given to a ship flying the flag of a state which is a party to that Convention or to the crew of such a ship.
4 Inspection body.
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paragraphs: (1) The Marine Survey Office of the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources shall be the Competent Authority for the inspection of ships for the purposes of the Directive and these Regulations.
(2) The function of the Competent Authority shall be to take whatever measures are necessary or appropriate in the performance of duties under the Directive and these Regulations and it has such powers as are necessary to enable it to perform that function.
5 Inspectors.
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paragraphs: (1) Subject to paragraph (5), the Minister shall appoint such and so many officers who fulfil the qualification criteria specified in Annex VII as the Minister thinks necessary to be inspectors for the purposes of the Directive and these Regulations and may revoke any such appointment.
(2) The Minister shall issue to every inspector appointed under paragraph (1) a warrant of appointment and the Competent Authority shall issue to every such inspector a personal document in the form of an identity card in accordance with Article 12(4) of the Directive as amended by Commission Directive No. 96/40/EC of 25 June 1996 establishing a common model for an identity card for inspectors carrying out port State control and, when exercising a power or performing a function conferred or imposed on an inspector by or under the Directive or these Regulations, the inspector shall, on being so requested by a person affected, produce the identity card to that person.
(3) Subject to paragraph (5) and to any directions of the Competent Authority, an inspector has such powers and shall perform such functions as are conferred or imposed on him or her by, or as are necessary to enable him or her to perform his or her duties under, the Directive or these Regulations.
(4) If an inspector does not have the required professional expertise in a matter necessary for the performance of a particular function under the Directive or these Regulations, the inspector may be assisted by any person with the required expertise as directed by the Competent Authority.
(5) An inspector performing functions under the Directive or these Regulations, and any persons assisting him or her, shall have no commercial interest either in the port or in the ships in respect of which the functions are performed, nor shall the inspector be employed by or undertake work on behalf of non-governmental organisations which issue statutory and classification certificates in respect of ships or which carry out the surveys necessary for the issue of those certificates.
6 Inspection Commitments.
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paragraphs: (1) The Competent Authority shall carry out an annual total number of inspections corresponding to at least 25 per cent of the number of individual ships which enter ports in the State during a representative calendar year.
(2) In selecting ships for inspection, the Competent Authority shall give priority to the categories of ships referred to in Annex I.
(3) Ships which have been inspected by the competent authority of any Member State within the previous six months shall not be inspected by the Competent Authority, provided that -
(a) the ship is not in a category listed in Annex I,
(b) no deficiencies have been reported following a previous inspection, and
(c) no clear grounds exist for carrying out an inspection.
(4) Paragraph (3) shall not apply to any of the operational controls specifically provided for in the Conventions.
7 Inspection procedure.
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paragraphs: (1) In carrying out an inspection under these Regulations an inspector shall, as a minimum -
(a) check the certificates and documents listed in Annex II, to the extent applicable, and
(b) satisfy himself or herself of the overall condition (including hygienic conditions) of the ship, including the engine room and accommodation.
(2) The inspector may examine all relevant certificates and documents, in addition to those listed in Annex II, which are required to be carried on board in accordance with the Conventions.
(3) Where, after the inspection referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2), an inspector believes on clear grounds that the condition of a ship or of its equipment or crew does not substantially meet the relevant requirements of a Convention, he or she shall carry out-
(a) a more detailed inspection, including further checking of compliance with on-board operational requirements, and
(b) a re-inspection to determine whether work or action to rectify any deficiency has been carried out or taken.
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (3), "clear grounds" exist when the inspector finds evidence which, in his or her professional judgement, warrants a more detailed inspection of the ship, its equipment or its crew, and the matters set out in Annex III shall constitute such evidence.
(5) An inspector shall also observe the relevant procedures and guidelines for the control of ships specified in Annex IV.
8 Expanded inspection of certain ships.
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paragraphs: (1) Where, as the result of an inspection referred to in Regulation 7, an inspector believes that the condition of a ship of a category listed in Annex V, or of its equipment or crew, does not substantially meet the relevant requirements of a Convention, then, subject to paragraph (3), the Competent Authority shall ensure that an expanded inspection of the ship is carried out by an inspector.
(2) Section B of Annex V contains non-mandatory guidelines for expanded inspections.
(3) Without prejudice to Regulation 7, an inspector shall not carry out an expanded inspection of a ship referred to in paragraph (1) where at any time during the immediately preceding period of 12 months an expanded inspection of the ship has been carried out by an inspector or the Competent Authority, or by an inspector appointed by a competent authority of any other Member State.