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"dangerous goods" means goods as defined in the Merchant Shipping (Dangerous Goods) Regulations 1997[2] and any reference to a particular class of dangerous goods is a reference to that class of dangerous goods as defined in those Regulations;

"deadweight" means the difference in tonnes between the displacement of a ship in water of a specific gravity of 1.025 at the load waterline corresponding to the assigned summer freeboard and the lightweight of the ship;

"EEA Agreement" means the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on 2nd May 1992[3] as adjusted by the Protocol signed at Brussels on 17th May 1993[4];

"EEA State" means a State which is a Contracting Party to the EEA Agreement;

"equivalent material" as used in the expression "steel or other equivalent material" means any non-combustible material which, by itself or due to insulation provided, has structural and integrity properties equivalent to steel at the end of an appropriate fire test;

"International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code" means the 1994 consolidated edition of the Code of that name published by the International Maritime Organisation as amended by Amendment No. 28 - 96;

"length" in relation to a registered ship means registered length, and in relation to an unregistered ship means the length from the fore part of the stem to the aft side of the head of the stern post or, if no stern post is fitted to take the rudder, to the fore side of the rudder stock at the point where the rudder passes out of the hull;

"lightweight" means the displacement of a ship in tonnes without cargo, oil fuel, lubricating oil, ballast water, fresh water in tanks or stores, and with passengers and crew and their effects;

"machinery space" means a space which contains propulsion machinery, boilers, oil fuel units, steam and internal combustion engines, generators and major electrical machinery, oil filling stations, refrigerating, stabilising, ventilation and air conditioning machinery and similar spaces and where the context so admits, any trunk to such a space;

"machinery spaces of Category A" means a space which contains - 

(a) internal combustion type machinery used either for main propulsion purposes, or for other purposes where such machinery has in aggregate a total power output of not less than 375 kilowatts; or

(b) any oil-fired boiler or oil-fired unit; and any trunk to such a space;

"Maritime and Coastguard Agency" means the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, an Executive Agency of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions;

"Merchant Shipping Notice" means a Notice described as such and issued by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency;

"non-combustible material" means material which when heated to a temperature of 750°C neither flames for longer than 10 seconds duration, nor raises either its internal temperature or the temperature of the test furnace more than 50°C above 750°C when tested in accordance with British Standard Specification 476: Part 4: 1970, and the expression "combustible material" shall be construed accordingly;

"oil-fired boiler" means any boiler wholly or partly fired by liquid fuel;

"oil-fuel unit" means the equipment used for the preparation of oil fuel for delivery to an oil-fired boiler or equipment used for the preparation for delivery of heated oil to an internal combustion engine, and includes any pressure pumps, filters and heaters dealing with oil at a pressure more than 180 kPa;

"open ship" means a ship in which all the passenger accommodation is completely open to the elements and is not fitted with a weathertight or watertight deck or structure above the waterline;

"passenger ship" means a ship carrying more than 12 passengers;

"pleasure vessel" means - 

(a) any vessel which at the time it is being used is - 


(i)


(a) in the case of a vessel wholly owned by an individual or individuals used only for the sport or pleasure of the owner or the immediate family or friends of the owner; or

(b) in the case of a vessel owned by a body corporate, used only for sport or pleasure and on which the persons are employees or officers of the body corporate, or their immediatte family or friends; and



(ii) on a voyage or excursion which is one for which the owner does not receive money for or in connection with operating the vessel or carrying any person, other than as a contribution to the direct expenses of the operation of the vessel incurred during the voyage or excursion; or



(b) any vessel wholly owned by or on behalf of a members' club formed for the purpose of sport or pleasure which, at the time it is being used, is used only for the sport or pleasure of members of that club or their immediate family; and for the use of which any charges levied are paid into club funds and applied for the general use of the club; and

(c) in the case of any vessel referred to in paragraphs (a) or (b) above no other payments are made by or on behalf of users of the vessel, other than by the owner;

In this definition "immediate family" means in relation to an individual, the husband or wife of the individual, and a relative of the individual or the individual's husband or wife, and "relative" means brother, sister, ancestor or lineal descendant;

"public spaces" includes halls, dining rooms, bars, smoke rooms, lounges, recreation rooms, nurseries, libraries, cinemas, sale shops and similar permanently enclosed spaces allocated to passengers or crew;

"relevant standard of an EEA State other than the United Kingdom", in relation to a reference to an International Standard or a British Standard, means - 

(a) a relevant standard or code of practice of a national standards body or equivalent body of an EEA State other than the United Kingdom; or

(b) a relevant international standard recognised for use in an EEA State other than the United Kingdom; or

(c) a relevant specification acknowledged for use as a standard by a public authority of a member state other than the United Kingdom;

being a standard, code of practice or specification which provides, in use, levels of safety, suitability and fitness for purpose equivalent to those provided by the International Standard or the British Standard;

"ro-ro cargo spaces" means spaces not normally subdivided in any way and extending to either a substantial length or the entire length of the ship in which goods (packaged or in bulk), in or on rail or road cars, vehicles (including road or rail tankers), trailers, containers, pallets, demountable tanks or in or on similar stowage units or other receptacles can be loaded and unloaded normally in a horizontal direction;

"sailing ship" means a ship provided with sufficient sail area for navigation under sails alone, whether or not fitted with mechanical means of propulsion;

"service spaces" include galleys, pantries containing cooking appliances, laundries, drying rooms, lockers and store rooms, paint rooms, baggage rooms, mail and specie rooms, workshops (other than those forming part of machinery spaces) and similar spaces and trunks to such spaces;

"similar stage of construction" means the stage at which construction identifiable with a specific ship begins; and assembly of that ship has commenced comprising at least 50 tonnes or one percent of the estimated mass of all structural materials, whichever is less;

"settling tank" means an oil storage tank having a heating surface of not less than 0.183 square metre per tonne of oil capacity;

"special category spaces" means any enclosed space above or below the bulkhead deck intended for the carriage of motor vehicles with fuel in their tanks for their own propulsion, into and from which such vehicles can be driven and to which such vehicles can be driven and to which passengers have access;

"standard fire test" means a test in which a specimen of the relevant "A" Class or "B"Class division, having an exposed surface area of not less than 4.65 square metres and a bulkhead height or deck length of 2.44 metres, resembling as closely as possible the intended construction and including where appropriate at least one joint, is exposed in a test furnace to a series of time-temperature relationships defined by a smooth curve drawn through the following temperature points measured above the initial furnace temperature - 

     At the end of the first 5 minutes, 556°C;

     At the end of the first 10 minutes, 659°C;

     At the end of the first 15 minutes, 718°C;

     At the end of the first 30 minutes, 821°C;

     At the end of the first 60 minutes, 925°C;

"surface spread of flame" means the surface spread of flame classified as Class 1 or Class 2 within the meaning of British Standard 476: Part 7: 1971;

"tanker" means a cargo ship constructed or adapted for the carriage in bulk of liquid cargoes of a flammable nature;

"tons" means gross tons and a reference to tons - 

(a) in relation to a ship having alternative gross tonnages under paragraph 13 of Schedule 5 of the Merchant Shipping (Tonnage) Regulations 1982[5] permitted to be used pursuant to regulation 12(1) of the Merchant Shipping (Tonnage) Regulations 1997[6] is a reference to the larger of these tonnages; and

(b) in relation to a ship having its tonnage determined both under Part II and regulation 12(2) of those 1997 Regulations is a reference to its gross tonnage as determined under the said regulation 12(2).

    (3) Any reference in these Regulations to - 

(a) a British Standard;

(b) an International Standard; or

(c) a Merchant Shipping Notice;

(d) any other specified Code or Guidelines;

shall include - 

(a) a reference to any document amending that publication which is considered by the Secretary of State to be relevant from time to time and is specified in a Merchant Shipping Notice; and

(b) with respect to a reference to an International Standard or a British Standard, a reference to a relevant standard of an EEA State other than the United Kingdom.

    (4) Any approval given in whatever form in pursuance of these Regulations shall be given in writing and shall specify the date on which it takes effect and the conditions (if any) on which it is given.

    (5) In these Regulations - 

(a) a reference to a numbered regulation is, unless otherwise stated, a reference to the regulation of that number in these Regulations;

(b) a reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is, unless otherwise stated, a reference to the paragraph of that number in that regulation;

(c) where a sub-heading refers to "requirements" or to "additional requirements" for certain ships, the text following such a subheading in that regulation (or until the next such subheading in that regulation) shall (unless the context otherwise requires) relate only to such ships.

    (6) In these Regulations - 

(a) a reference to a ship constructed on or after a specified date is reference to a ship the keel of which is laid or which is at a similar stage of construction on or after that date;

(b) a reference to a ship constructed before a specified date is a reference to a ship the keel of which is laid or which is at a similar stage of construction before that date; and

(c) where the reference to a ship so constructed is to be understood as being or including a reference to a passenger ship, the reference includes a reference to a ship which satisfies both the following requirements, that is to say - 


(i) that the keel of the ship was laid or that the ship was at a similar stage of construction before the specified date; and

(ii) that the ship, not being a passenger ship before that date, is converted to a passenger ship, such conversion commencing on or after that date.

    (7)

(a)


(i) Subject to subparagraph (b) below and to paragraph (8) these Regulations shall apply to United Kingdom ships of Class II(A) of less than 21.34m in length, Classes III, IV, V, VI and VI(A) and Classes VII, VII(A), VIII, VIII(A), IX, IX(A), XI and XII of under 500 tons wherever they may be and to other such ships while they are within the United Kingdom or the territorial waters thereof, and,

(ii) where any requirement of the Regulations relates to ships constructed on or after a certain date, then, to the extent the Secretary of State deems reasonable and practicable, the requirement shall also apply in respect of any major repairs, alterations and modifications commenced on or after the date to ships constructed before that date.



(b) These Regulations shall not apply to - 



(i) fishing vessels;

(ii) pleasure vessels which are not passenger ships and are of less than 13.7 metres in length;

(iii) high-speed craft to which the Merchant Shipping (Hig-Speed Craft) Regulations 1996[7] apply;

(iv) the following non-United Kingdom ships - 


(aa) troopships;

(bb) ships not propelled by mechanical means; or

(cc) a ship by reason of her being within the United Kingdom or the territorial waters thereof if she would not have been therein but for stress of weather or any other circumstances that neither the master nor the owner nor the charterer (if any) could have prevented.

    (8) Every ship to which these Regulations apply, the keel of which was laid before 26th May 1965, shall be exempt from all the requirements of these Regulations to the extent, and subject to the conditions, specified in Schedule 1 of Merchant Shipping Notice MSN 1670.

Classification of ships
     2.  - (1) For the purposes of these Regulations ships shall be arranged in Classes as follows - 


Passenger ships

Class II(A)	Passenger ships engaged on voyages of any kind other than international voyages;
Class III	Passenger ships engaged only on voyages in the course of which they are at no time more than 70 miles by sea from their point of departure and not more than 18 miles from the coast of the United Kingdom, and which are at sea only in favourable weather and during restricted periods;
Class IV	Passenger ships engaged only on voyages in Category A, B, C and D waters;
Class V	Passenger ships engaged only on voyages in Category A, B and C waters;
Class VI	Passenger ships engaged only on voyages with not more than 250 passengers on board, to sea, or in Category A, B, C and D waters, in all cases in favourable weather and during restricted periods, in the course of which the ships are at no time more than 15 miles, exclusive of any category, A, B and C waters, from their point of departure nor more than 3 miles from land;
Class VI(A)	Passenger ships carrying not more than 50 passengers for a distance of not more than 6 miles on voyages to or from isolated communities on the islands or coast of the United Kingdom and which do not proceed for a distance of more than 3 miles from land subject to any conditions which the Secretary of State may impose;

Ships other than passenger ships

Class VII	Ships (other than ships of Classes I, VII(A), VII(T), XI and XII) engaged on voyages any of which are long international voyages;
Class VII(A)	Ships employed as fish processing or canning factory ships, and ships engaged in the carriage of persons employed in the fish processing or canning industries;
Class VII(T)	Tankers engaged on voyages any of which are long international voyages;
Class VIII	Ships (other than ships of Classes II, VIII(T) IX, XI, and XII) engaged on voyages (not being long international voyages) any of which are short international voyages.
Class VIII(A)	Ships (other than ships of Classes II(A) to VI(A) inclusive, VIII(A)(T), IX, IX(A), IX(A)(T). XI and XII), engaged on voyages which are not international voyages;
Class VIII(T)	Tankers engaged only on short international voyages;
Class VIII(A)(T)	Tankers engaged only on voyages which are not international voyages;
Class IX	Tugs and tenders (other than ships of Classes II, II(A), III, VI and VI(A)) which proceed to sea but are not engaged on long international voyages;
Class IX(A)	Ships (other than ships of Classes IV to VI inclusive) which do not proceed to sea;
Class IX(A)(T)	Tankers which do not proceed to sea;
Class XI	Sailing ships (other than ships of Class XII) which proceed to sea;
Class XII	Pleasure craft (other than ships of Classes I to VI(A) inclusive) of 13.7 metres in length or over.

    (2) For the purposes of this regulation the following expressions have the following meanings respectively - 

"Category A, B, C or D waters" means the waters specified as such in Merchant Shipping Notice No. M.1504; and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;

"favourable weather" means fine, clear, settled weather with a sea state such as to cause only moderate rolling and/or pitching;

"long international voyage" means a voyage from a port in one country to which the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 (as amended) applies to a port in another country, or conversely, and which is not a short international voyage;

"short international voyage" means an international voyage - 

(a) in the course of which a ship is not more than two hundred nautical miles from a port of place in which the passengers and crew could be placed in safety; and

(b) which does not exceed 600 nautical miles in distance between the last port of call in the country in which the voyage begins and the first port of destination. However for the purposes of this definition no account shall be taken of any deviation by a ship from her intended voyage due solely to stress of weather or any other circumstances that neither the master nor the owner nor the charterer (if any) of the ship could have presented or forestalled;

"restricted period" means a period falling wholly within the following limits - 

(a) from 1st April to 31st October, both dates inclusive; and

(b) between one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset in the case of ships fitted with navigation lights conforming to the collision regulations and between sunrise and sunset in the case of any other ships;

"sea" does not include any waters specified as Category A, B, C or D in Merchant Shipping Notice No. M.1504;

"voyage" includes an excursion.

[2] S.I. 1997.back

[3] Cm. 2073.back

[4] Cm. 2183.back

[5] S.I. 1982/841 to which there was an amendment not relevant to these Regulations.back

[6] S.I. 1997/1510.back

[7] S.I. 1996/3188.back