The Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail Regulations 1996

PART I INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail Regulations 1996 and shall come into force on 1st September 1996.

(2) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the 1983 Regulations” means the Classification and Lebelling of Explosives Regulations 1983(1);

“A₁” means the maximum activity of special form radioactive material permitted in a Type A package, calculated in accordance with paragraph 15 of the Approved Document;

“A₂” means the maximum activity of radioactive material other than special form radioactive material permitted in a Type A package, calculated in accordance with paragraph 15 of the Approved Document;

“ADR” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“Approved Document” means the document entitled “Approved Requirements for the Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail” approved and published by the Health and Safety Commission in accordance with regulation 3(1), as revised in accordance with regulation 3(2);

“carriage” means carriage by rail and shall be construed in accordance with paragraph (7) of this regulation, and related words shall be construed accordingly;

“Carriage Information” means the information referred to in regulation 35 and described in Schedule 14;

“category” in relation to packages and overpacks means one of the categories referred to in Tables IX and X of paragraph 19 of the Approved Document and any reference to category I-WHITE, category II-YELLOW or category III-YELLOW shall be construed accordingly;

“the CDGCPL Regulations” means the Carriage of Dangerous Goods (Classification, Packaging and Labelling) and Use of Transportable Pressure Receptacles Regulations 1996(2);

“competent authority” means the Secretary of State, or any national authority of a state other than the United Kingdom or any international authority which is for the time being designated or otherwise recognised as a competent authority for any purpose in connection with the International Safety Regulations as they apply to rail transport;

“competent authority identification mark” means a mark assigned by a competent authority in accordance with Schedule 1;

“computer” means a computer system including its software;

“consignment” means any package or packages, or load of radioactive material, presented by a consignor for carriage;

“consignor” shall be regarded as—

(a)

the person who, having a place of business in Great Britain, consigns, whether as principal or agent for another, radioactive material for carriage; or

(b)

if no person satisfies the requirements of sub-paragraph (a) above, the consignee of radioactive material insofar as that person has control over the carriage of that material in Great Britain;

“consignor’s declaration” means the declaration specified in Schedule 14;

“containment system” means the assembly of components of the packaging specified by the designer as intended to retain the radioactive material during carriage;

“contamination” means the contamination of any surface by any radioactive material in quantities in excess of 0·4 Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters or 0·04 Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters, and “contaminated” and “decontaminated” shall be construed accordingly;

“COTIF” means the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail(3), as revised or re-issued from time to time;

“dangerous goods” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“danger sign” means the sign for radioactive material ascertained in accordance with Schedule 13;

“depleted uranium” means uranium containing a lesser mass percentage of uranium-235 than in natural uranium;

“design” means, in relation to any package, packaging or special form radioactive material, a description which enables that package, packaging or special form radioactive material to be fully identified and which may include specifications, engineering drawings, reports demonstrat ing compliance with regulatory requirements, and other relevant documentation;

“the Directive” means Council Directive 96/49/EC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States with regard to the transport of dangerous goods by rail;

“excepted package” means a package which meets the requirements of sub-paragraphs 1 to 9 and 12 of paragraph 1 of the Approved Document and—

(a)

is a package containing radioactive material of limited activity which meets the requirements of paragraph 2 of the Approved Document;

(b)

is a package containing instruments or manufactured articles which meets the requirements of paragraph 3 of the Approved Document; or

(c)

is an empty packaging which meets the requirements of paragraph 4 of the Approved Document;

“exclusive use” means the sole use, by a single consignor, of a large freight container or a wagon, in respect of which all initial, intermediate, and final loading and unloading is carried out in accordance with the directions of the consignor or consignee;

“facility owner” has the meaning assigned to it by section 17(6) of the Railways Act 1993(4);

“factory” has the meaning assigned to it by section 175 of the Factories Act 1961(5);

“fissile material” means uranium-233, uranium-235, plutonium-238, plutonium-239, plutonium-241, or any combination thereof, and does not include unirradiated natural uranium, unirradiated depleted uranium, or natural uranium or depleted uranium which has been irradiated in thermal reactors only;

“fissile package” means a package which meets the requirements of paragraph 6 of the Approved Document;

“fixed contamination” means contamination other than non-fixed contamination;

“freight container” means an article of transport equipment designed to facilitate the transport of goods, either packaged or unpackaged, by one or more modes of transport without intermediate reloading, which is of a permanent enclosed character, rigid and strong enough for repeated use, and fitted with devices facilitating its handling, particularly in transfer between conveyances and from one mode of transport to another;

“harbour area” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the Dangerous Substances in Harbour Areas Regulations 1987(6);

“hazardous properties” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“IMDG Code” means the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code, as revised or re-issued from time to time by the International Maritime Organization(7);

“industrial package” means an industrial package Type 1, an industrial package Type 2 or an industrial package Type 3;

“industrial package Type 1” means a package meeting the requirements of sub-paragraph 1 of paragraph 8 of the Approved Document;

“industrial package Type 2” means a package meeting the requirements of sub-paragraph 2 of paragraph 8 of the Approved Document;

“industrial package Type 3” means a package meeting the requirements of sub-paragraph 3 of paragraph 8 of the Approved Document;

“infrastructure controller” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the Railways (Safety Case) Regulations 1994(8);

“the International Safety Regulations” means the Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material(9);

“the ISO classification document” means the International Organization for Standardiza tion document, “Sealed Radioactive Sources—Classification”(10);

“the ISO freight containers document” means the International Organization for Standardization document, “Series 1 Freight Containers—Specifications and Testing—Part 1: General Cargo Containers”(11);

“the ISO leak test document” means the International Organization for Standardization document, “Sealed Radioactive Sources—Leak Test Methods”(12);

“large freight container” means a freight container with a minimum length of 6 metres;

“locomotive” has the meaning assigned to it in section 83(1) of the Railways Act 1993;

“LSA material” means low specific activity material;

“LSA-I” means LSA material comprising—

(a)

ores containing naturally occurring radionuclides, such as uranium and thorium, and uranium or thorium concentrates of such ores;

(b)

solid unirradiated natural uranium or depleted uranium or natural thorium or their solid compounds or their mixtures; or

(c)

radioactive material, other than fissile material, for which the A₂ value is unlimited;

“LSA-II” means LSA material comprising—

(a)

water with tritium concentrated up to 0·8 TBq/L; or

(b)

other material in which the activity is distributed throughout and the estimated average specific activity does not exceed 10⁻⁴ A₂/g for solids and gases, and 10⁻⁵ A₂/g for liquids;

“LSA-III” means LSA material comprising solids, such as consolidated wastes and activated materials, in which—

(a)

the radioactive material is distributed throughout a solid or a collection of solid objects, or is essentially uniformly distributed in a solid compact binding agent, such as concrete, bitumen or ceramic;

(b)

the radioactive material is relatively insoluble, or is intrinsically contained in a relatively insoluble matrix, which is of such a nature that if the entire contents of a package containing the material were subjected to the test specified in sub-section 1 of section 14 of the Approved Document the activity in the water used in the test would not, at the end of the test, exceed 0·1 A₂; and

(c)

the estimated average specific activity of the solid, excluding any shielding material, does not exceed 2×10⁻³ A₂/g;

“low specific activity material” means radioactive material which by its nature has a limited specific activity, or for which limits of estimated average specific activity, disregarding external shielding materials surrounding the radioactive material, apply;

“low toxicity alpha emitter” means thorium-228 in ores or physical or chemical concentrates, thorium-230 in ores or physical or chemical concentrates, natural uranium, depleted uranium, natural thorium, uranium-235, uranium-238, thorium-232, or an alpha emitter with a half life of less than 10 days;

“maximum normal operating pressure” means the maximum pressure above atmospheric pressure at mean sea level that would develop in the containment system in a period of one year under the conditions of temperature and solar radiation corresponding to environmental conditions of transport in the absence of venting, external cooling by an ancillary system, or operational controls during carriage;

“military establishment” means an establishment intended for use for naval, military or air force purposes or the purposes of the department of the Secretary of State having responsibility for Defence;

“mine” and “quarry” have the meanings assigned to them by section 180 of the Mines and Quarries Act 1954(13);

“multilateral approval” means approval by the competent authority both of the state of origin of the design or shipment and of each state through or into (but not by air over) which the consignment is to be carried;

“naturally occurring distribution of uranium isotopes” means approximately 99·28% uranium-238 and 0·72% uranium-235 by mass, but including a very small mass percentage of uranium-234;

“natural uranium” means chemically separated uranium containing the naturally occurring distribution of uranium isotopes;

“non-fixed contamination” means contamination that can be removed from a surface during normal handling;

“orange-coloured panel” means a non-reflectorised panel having the same colour and luminance properties as those specified in relation to orange-coloured plates in marginal 1800(1) of Appendix VIII of the Annex to the Directive;

“overpack” means an enclosure which is used by a single consignor to consolidate into one handling unit a consignment of two or more packages for convenience of carriage, such as a box or a bag;

“package” means packaging with the radioactive contents thereof as presented for carriage;

“packaging” means the assembly of components necessary to enclose the radioactive contents completely and may, in particular, consist of one or more receptacles, absorbent materials, spacing structures, radiation shielding, service equipment for filling, emptying, venting and pressure relief, and devices for cooling, for absorbing mechanical shocks, for providing handling and tie-down capability, for thermal insulation, and service devices integral to the package, and may be a box, drum or similar receptacle, or a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon where the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned is used as a containment system;

“packaging components” has the meaning assigned to it in section 1(2) of the Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Act 1991(14);

“piggyback transport” means the carriage of a road vehicle on a wagon;

“quality assurance progamme” means a systematic programme of controls, inspections and training applied by any person or organisation involved in the carriage of radioactive material, including designers and manufacturers of packagings, consignors and operators, to ensure compliance with the requirements of these Regulations concerning packages and consignments;

“radiation level” means the corresponding dose equivalent rate expressed in mSv per hour;

“radioactive material” has the meaning assigned to it in section 1(1) of the Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Act 1991;

“railway” means a system of transport employing parallel rails which provide support and guidance for vehicles carried on flanged wheels, except any such system which—

(a)

is a tramway within the meaning of section 67(1) of the Transport and Works Act 1992(15); or

(b)

is operated wholly within a factory, harbour area, military establishment, mine or quarry;

“railway facility” has the meaning assigned to it by section 83(1) of the Railways Act 1993;

“railway vehicle” means any conveyance which is used to carry radioactive material on a railway;

“RID” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“road vehicle” means any conveyance which is used to carry radioactive material on a road;

“routine carriage” means carriage in incident free conditions;

“SCO” means a surface contaminated object;

“SCO-I” means an SCO on which—

(a)

the non-fixed contamination on the accessible surface averaged over an area of 300 cm² (or the area of the surface if the area is less than 300 cm²) does not exceed 4 Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters, or 0·4 Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters;

(b)

the fixed contamination on the accessible surface averaged over an area of 300 cm² (or the area of the surface if the area is less than 300 cm²) does not exceed 4×10⁴ Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters, or 4×10³ Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters; and

(c)

the non-fixed contamination plus the fixed contamination on the inaccessible surface averaged over an area of 300 cm² (or the area of the surface if the area is less than 300 cm²) does not exceed 4×10⁴ Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters, or 4×10³ Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters;

“SCO-II” means an SCO on which either the fixed or non-fixed contamination on the surface exceeds the applicable limits specified for SCO-I in the definition of that term and on which—

(a)

the non-fixed contamination on the accessible surface averaged over an area of 300 cm² (or the area of the surface if the area is less than 300 cm²) does not exceed 400 Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters, or 40 Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters;

(b)

the fixed contamination on the accessible surface averaged over an area of 300 cm² (or the area of the surface if the area is less than 300 cm²) does not exceed 8×10⁵ Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters, or 8×10⁴ Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters; and

(c)

the non-fixed contamination plus the fixed contamination on the inaccessible surface averaged over an area of 300 cm² (or the area of the surface if the area is less than 300 cm²) does not exceed 8×10⁵ Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters, or 8×10⁴ Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters;

“shipment” means the specific movement of consignment from origin to destination where that movement includes carriage in Great Britain;

“special arrangement” means those conditions approved by the relevant competent authority under which a consignment, which does not satisfy all the applicable requirements of these Regulations, may be carried;

“special form radioactive material” means an indispersible solid radioactive material, or a sealed capsule containing radioactive material, which meets the requirements of paragraph 5 of the Approved Document;

“specific activity” means either the activity of a radionuclide per unit mass of that nuclide or, in the case where the radionuclide is essentially uniformly distributed in radioactive material, the activity per unit mass of that material;

“subsidiary hazard” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“subsidiary hazard sign” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“surface contaminated object” means a solid object which is not itself radioactive but which has radioactive material distributed on its surfaces;

“tank” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“tank container” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“tank wagon” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations;

“train” has the meaning assigned to it by section 83(1) of the Railways Act 1993;

“train operator” in relation to any train, means any person who has the management of that train for the time being, and related expressions shall be construed accordingly;

“Transport Index” means a single number assigned to a package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon or to unpackaged LSA-I or SCO-I, determined in accordance with paragraph 17 of the Approved Document;

“Type A package” means a package containing an activity up to A₁, if special form radioactive material, or up to A₂ if not special form radioactive material, meeting the requirements of paragraph 10 of the Approved Document;

“Type B package” means a package containing an activity which may be in excess of A₁, if special form radioactive material, or in excess of A₂, if not special form radioactive material, which is either a Type B(M) package or a Type B(U) package;

“Type B(M) package” means a package meeting the requirements of paragraph 13 of the Approved Document;

“Type B(U) package” means a package meeting the requirements of paragraph 12 of the Approved Document;

“uncompressed gas” means gas at a pressure not exceeding ambient atmospheric pressure at the time the containment system is closed;

“unilateral approval” means approval of a design by the competent authority of the state of origin of the design;

“unirradiated thorium” means thorium containing not more than 10plusmn;7 g of uranium-233 per gram of thorium-232;

“unirradiated uranium” means uranium containing not more than 10⁻⁶ g of plutonium per gram of uranium-235 and not more than 9 MBq of fission products per gram of uranium-235;

“UN number” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 2(1) of the CDGCPL Regulations and any reference to the letters “UN” followed by a number, in relation to certain radioactive material, means the particular UN number for that material specified in paragraph 20 of the Approved Document;

“wagon” means a railway vehicle, other than a tank wagon, used for the carriage of goods.

(3) These Regulations give effect to the International Safety Regulations and, unless the context otherwise requires, expressions used in these Regulations which are also used in those Regulations have the meaning they bear in those Regulations.

(4) For the purposes of these Regulations, the operator of a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon used for the carriage of radioactive material shall be—

(a) the person who, having a place of business in Great Britain, owns the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned; or

(b) if no person satisfies the requirements of sub-paragraph (a) above, the person who, having a place of business in Great Britain, acts as agent for the owner of the said freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon; or

(c) if no person satisfies the requirements of either sub-paragraph (a) or sub-paragraph (b) above, the operator of the train on which the freight container or tank container is carried or of which the tank wagon or wagon forms part.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4), a person to whom a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon is leased or hired shall be deemed to be the owner thereof unless the lessor or, as the case may be, the hirer has made a written agreement with the person to whom he has leased or hired the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon to the effect that the lessor or hirer shall assume the responsibilities of the owner imposed by or under these Regulations.

(6) For the purposes of these Regulations—

(a) the members of the crew of a train shall include the driver, guard and any other person on board who has responsibilities in connection with the carriage of radioactive material on that train; and

(b) any reference to the carriage of any radioactive material in bulk shall be a reference to the carriage of solid radioactive material without packagings, other than in a tank.

(7) For the purposes of these Regulations, a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon shall be deemed to be engaged in the carriage of radioactive material throughout the period—

(a) in the case where the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned has been loaded with the radioactive material concerned before being brought onto the railway, from the time when the said freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon is brought onto the railway for the purpose of carrying that material; or

(b) in the case where the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned has been brought onto the railway before the commencement of loading, from the commencement of loading the said freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon with the radioactive material for the purpose of carrying that material,

until the time when the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon—

(c) is removed from the railway; or

(d) has been unloaded and, where necessary, cleaned, purged or decontaminated so that any of the radioactive material which remains therein is not sufficient to create a risk to the health or safety of any person.

(8) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in these Regulations to—

(a) a numbered regulation or Schedule is a reference to the regulation or Schedule in these Regulations so numbered;

(b) a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph so numbered in the regulation or Schedule in which the reference appears.

Application

2.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), these Regulations shall apply to, and in relation to, the carriage of radioactive material.

(2) These Regulations shall not apply to, or in relation to, the carriage of radioactive material in the body of a person having been—

(a) surgically implanted therein in the form of a cardiac pacemaker or other device; or

(b) administered to that person in the form of radiopharmaceuticals.

(3) Regulations 3 to 29, 34 to 38 and 40 shall not apply to, or in relation to, the carriage of radioactive material where—

(a) the carriage forms part of an international transport operation which is subject to any bilateral or multilateral special agreement made under the terms of article 4.3 of ADR to which the United Kingdom is a signatory and conforms with any conditions attached to the agreement concerned;

(b) the carriage forms part of an international transport operation within the meaning of COTIF and conforms in every respect with the provisions of RID; or

(c) the carriage forms part of an international transport operation which is subject to any bilateral or multilateral special agreement made under the terms of COTIF to which the United Kingdom is a signatory and conforms with any conditions attached to the agreement concerned.

(4) Regulations 4(a) and (d), 5 to 8, 10, 11, 12(1)(a), (2) and (3) and 13 to 16 shall not apply to or in relation to the carriage of any radioactive material where the carriage forms part of a transport operation which includes transport by road in Great Britain.

PART II: APPROVED DOCUMENT

Approved Document

3.—(1) The Health and Safety Commission shall approve and publish for the purposes of these Regulations a document entitled “Approved Requirements for the Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail” which shall contain—

(a) in Part I, the requirements for packages and packagings;

(b) in Part II, the test procedures for radioactive material and packages;

(c) in Part III, the information requirements concerning the preparation of radioactive material;

(d) in Part IV, the requirements for tanks; and

(e) explanatory notes and other material requisite for the use of the document.

(2) The Health and Safety Commission may approve a revision of the Approved Document and, when it does so, the Commission shall within 3 months of the date of that approval publish, in such manner as it considers appropriate, a notice specifying the revision, the date on which it was approved and the date on which it takes effect, which last-mentioned date shall be not less than 6 months after the date of the approval of the revision.

Duties in relation to the Approved Document

4.  Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions contained in these Regulations—

(a) the consignor of radioactive material shall ensure that such of the requirements specified in the Approved Document as are applicable to the consignment of that material are complied with in relation thereto;

(b) the operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that such of the requirements specified in the Approved Document as are applicable to the carriage of that material are complied with in relation thereto;

(c) the operator of any train which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material and each infrastructure controller upon whose railway the material is carried, shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that such of the requirements specified in the Approved Document as are applicable to the carriage of that material are complied with in relation thereto;

(d) any person who designs, manufactures, imports, supplies, modifies, repairs, or tests a package or tests radioactive material which is intended to be, or is being, carried shall ensure insofar as they are matters within his control that such of the requirements in the Approved Document as are applicable to that package or radioactive material are complied with in relation thereto.

PART III: APPROVALS

Approval of design for special form radioactive material

5.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any special form radioactive material without unilateral approval of the design for that material.

(2) Where the design for special form radioactive material originated in the United Kingdom, an application for approval of the design by the Secretary of State shall include the information specified in Schedule 2.

(3) The approval by the Secretary of State of a design for special form radioactive material which originated in the United Kingdom shall be given by the issue of a special form radioactive material approval certificate stating that the design meets the requirements for special form radioactive material specified in paragraph 5 of the Approved Document.

(4) The approval of a design for special form radioactive material which originated in a state other than the United Kingdom shall be evidenced by a special form radioactive material approval certificate issued by the competent authority of the state of origin of the design stating that the design meets requirements equivalent to those referred to in paragraph (3).

Approval of Type B(U) package designs

6.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any Type B(U) package without unilateral approval of the package design for that package or, in the case of a package containing fissile material and requiring approval under regulation 8(1), multilateral approval of the package design for that package.

(2) An application for approval of a package design for a Type B(U) package by the Secretary of State shall include the information specified in Schedule 3.

(3) The approval by the Secretary of State of a package design for a Type B(U) package shall be given by the issue of a package design approval certificate stating that the package design meets the requirements for Type B(U) packages specified in paragraphs 11 and 12 of the Approved Document.

(4) The approval by a competent authority other than the Secretary of State of a package design for a Type B(U) package shall be evidenced by a package design approval certificate issued by that competent authority stating that the package design meets requirements equivalent to those referred to in paragraph (3).

Approval of Type B(M) package designs

7.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any Type B(M) package without multilateral approval of the package design for that package.

(2) An application for approval of a package design for a Type B(M) package by the Secretary of State shall include the information specified in Schedule 4.

(3) The approval by the Secretary of State of a package design for a Type B(M) package shall be given by the issue of a package design approval certificate stating that the package design meets the requirements for Type B(M) packages specified in paragraphs 11 and 13 of the Approved Document.

(4) The approval by a competent authority other than the Secretary of State of a package design for a Type B(M) package shall be evidenced by a package design approval certificate issued by that competent authority stating that the package design meets requirements equivalent to those referred to in paragraph (3).

Approval of package designs for fissile material

8.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any package containing fissile material, other than a package containing fissile material which falls within paragraph 7 of the Approved Document, without multilateral approval of the package design for that package.

(2) An application for the approval of a package design for fissile material by the Secretary of State shall include the information specified in Schedule 5.

(3) The approval by the Secretary of State of a package design for fissile material shall be given by the issue of a package design approval certificate stating that the design meets the requirements for fissile packages specified in paragraph 6 of the Approved Document.

(4) The approval by a competent authority other than the Secretary of State of a package design for such material shall be evidenced by a package design approval certificate issued by that competent authority stating that the design meets requirements equivalent to those referred to in paragraph (3).

Saving and transitional provision for designs approved under earlier international regulations or under previous regulations

9.—(1) Subject to the following provisions of this regulation, notwithstanding the provisions of regulations 6 to 8 of these Regulations or regulation 32 of the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail Regulations 1996(16), any packaging, the construction of which was commenced before these Regulations came into force and which is manufactured to a design approved by a competent authority under the Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material 1973 Edition(17), the 1973 (as amended) Edition(18) of those Regulations or the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail Regulations 1994(19) may continue to be used for the carriage of radioactive material.

(2) The use of any packaging falling within paragraph (1) shall require multilateral approval.

(3) Before use, any packaging falling within paragraph (1) shall be legibly and durably marked with a serial number assigned in accordance with paragraph 9 of Schedule 13.

(4) Paragraph (1) shall not apply where changes which have been made in the design of the packaging or in the nature or quantity of the authorised radioactive contents are likely to affect safety.

Approval of shipments under special arrangement

10.—(1) Radioactive material, whose carriage is otherwise prohibited by regulation 17(5), 19 or 20(2), may be carried under special arrangement with multilateral approval.

(2) Approval may not be given by the Secretary of State to a shipment under special arrangement unless the provisions for carriage are adequate to ensure that the overall level of safety during carriage is at least equivalent to that which would have been achieved if all the applicable requirements of these Regulations had been met.

(3) An application for approval by the Secretary of State of a shipment under special arrangement shall include the information specified in Schedule 6.

(4) The approval by the Secretary of State of a shipment under special arrangement shall be given by the issue of a special arrangement approval certificate.

(5) The approval by a competent authority of a state other than the United Kingdom of a shipment under special arrangement shall be evidenced by a special arrangement approval certificate issued by that competent authority.

Approval of other shipments

11.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be made any shipment of the following without multilateral approval of the shipment—

(a) a Type B(M) package especially designed to allow controlled intermittent venting;

(b) a Type B(M) package containing radioactive material with an activity greater than either—

(i) 3×10³ A₁ or 3×10³ A₂, as appropriate, or

(ii) 1000 TBq,

whichever is the lower; or

(c) packages containing fissile material where the sum of the Transport Indexes of the individual packages exceeds 50.

(2) An application for approval by the Secretary of State of a shipment falling within paragraph (1) shall include the information specified in Schedule 7.

(3) The approval by the Secretary of State of a shipment falling within paragraph (1) shall be given by the issue of a certificate.

(4) The approval by a competent authority other than the Secretary of State of a shipment falling within paragraph (1) shall be evidenced by a certificate issued by that competent authority.

PART IV: PACKAGING REQUIREMENTS

Quality assurance programmes

12.—(1) Insofar as they are matters within his control, it shall be the duty of—

(a) the designer, manufacturer and consignor of any package, packaging or special form radioactive material;

(b) the operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is used for the carriage of any such package, packaging or special form radioactive material;

(c) the train operator on whose train any such package, packaging or special form radioactive material is carried; and

(d) the infrastructure controller on whose railway any such package, packaging or special form radioactive material is carried,

to establish and maintain an adequate quality assurance programme in order to ensure that the requirements of these Regulations in relation to the design, manufacture, testing, documentation, maintenance, inspection and carriage of that package, packaging or special form radioactive material are complied with.

(2) Where these Regulations require a package design, design for special form radioactive material or a shipment to be approved by the Secretary of State, no such approval shall be given unless the Secretary of State is satisfied as to the adequacy of the quality assurance programme for that design or shipment.

(3) It shall be the duty of the designer and manufacturer of any package design and the consignor and operator of any package, the design of which requires approval under these Regulations, when so requested by the Secretary of State—

(a) to provide the Secretary of State with facilities to inspect the packaging during construction and use;

(b) to demonstrate to the Secretary of State that the construction methods and materials used for the construction of the packaging are in accordance with the approved design specifications;

(c) to demonstrate to the Secretary of State that all packagings or special form radioactive material built to an approved design are periodically inspected and, as necessary, repaired and maintained in good condition so that they continue to comply with all the requirements of these Regulations, even after repeated use; and

(d) in the case where a design specification has been fully implemented, to produce a certificate to that effect to the Secretary of State.

Testing

13.  The Secretary of State may require such additional tests as he considers necessary to be made on any package or special form radioactive material required by these Regulations to be tested in accordance with paragraph 14 of the Approved Document.

Notification and registration of serial numbers

14.—(1) The manufacturer of any packaging manufactured after these Regulations came into force, to a design approved by the Secretary of State under regulation 6(3), 7(3), or 8(3) or falling within regulation 9(1), shall—

(a) assign a unique serial number to that packaging; and

(b) promptly notify the Secretary of State of the serial number assigned.

(2) The owner of any other packaging, manufactured to a design falling within regulation 9(1), shall promptly notify the Secretary of State of any serial number assigned to that packaging.

(3) The Secretary of State shall maintain a register of the serial numbers notified to him under paragraphs (1) and (2).

Package inspection prior to shipment

15.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be made the first shipment of any package unless the requirements in Schedule 8 are met.

(2) No person shall cause or permit to be made any shipment of any package unless the requirements in Schedule 9 are met.

Notification of shipment

16.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be made the first shipment of any package which requires the approval of any competent authority under these Regulations unless copies of each approval certificate required for the package design of that package have been submitted to the competent authority of each state through or into which the consignment is to be carried.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), no person shall cause or permit to be made any shipment—

(a) of a Type B(U) package containing radioactive material with an activity greater than—

(i) 3×10³ A₁ or 3×10³ A₂, as appropriate, or

(ii) 1000 TBq,

whichever is the lower;

(b) of a Type B(M) package; or

(c) of a shipment under special arrangement,

without giving notice in accordance with Schedule 10 to the competent authority of each state through or into which the shipment is to be transported.

(3) Separate notification to the Secretary of State is not required of the information specified in Schedule 10 where that information was included in the application for approval of a shipment under regulation 11(2).

PART V: GENERAL CARRIAGE PROHIBITIONS AND OPERATING REQUIRE MENTS

General prohibitions

17.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried in a passenger train any category I-WHITE package, other than an excepted package, any category II-YELLOW or any category III-YELLOW package unless the package is carried in a coach or a compartment thereof from which all passengers, other than those authorised to accompany the package, are excluded.

(2) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any package if he knows or has reason to believe that the package has or may have been damaged unless—

(a) following the incident which resulted or may have resulted in such damage, the consignor of the package—

(i) has examined it,

(ii) is satisfied that it still complies with the relevant requirements of these Regulations, and

(iii) issues a certificate to that effect; and

(b) that certificate is carried with the package.

(3) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material in packaging which displays a danger sign which does not correspond to the material therein.

(4) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material unless he holds the Carriage Information for that material.

(5) Subject to regulation 10, no person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material except where such material—

(a) forms the contents of a package which is either—

(i) an excepted package,

(ii) an industrial package,

(iii) a Type A package,

(iv) a Type B package, or

(v) a fissile package which meets the requirements of paragraph 6 of the Approved Document; or

(b) is unpackaged LSA-I or SCO-I which is to be carried in accordance with the conditions prescribed in paragraph 9 of the Approved Document.

(6) No person shall cause or permit to be carried in any tank which has been used for the carriage of radioactive material any goods other than radioactive material.

Suitability of freight containers, tank containers, tank wagons and wagons

18.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material in a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon unless the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned—

(a) is suitable for the purpose, having regard to—

(i) the nature and circumstances of the journey to be undertaken, and

(ii) the hazardous properties and quantity of the radioactive material and any other goods to be carried with them; and

(b) has been adequately maintained.

(2) No train operator shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material in freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon unless he has taken all reasonable steps to ensure that paragraph (1) has been complied with.

Contents limits

19.  Subject to regulation 10, no person shall cause or permit to be carried any package, the radioactive contents of which exceed the limits specified in paragraph 16 of the Approved Document for that type of package.

Transport Index limits

20.—(1) No person shall consign for carriage—

(a) unpackaged LSA-I or SCO-I; or

(b) other radioactive material in a package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon,

unless the Transport Index for that item and for the whole consignment has been determined in accordance with paragraph 17 of the Approved Document.

(2) Subject to regulation 10, no person shall cause or permit to be carried any package or overpack where the Transport Index for that item is greater than 10, except where that item is being carried under exclusive use.

(3) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material, other than a consignment consisting entirely of LSA-1, in a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon where the sum of the Transport Indexes in the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned is greater than 50, except where that freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon is under exclusive use.

(4) No person shall cause or permit to be carried in any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon under exclusive use any packages or overpacks of fissile material where the sum of the Transport Indexes in the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned is greater than 100.

(5) No person shall cause or permit to be carried in an overpack any packages of fissile material for which the Transport Index for nuclear criticality control exceeds 0.

Activity limits

21.  No person shall cause or permit to be carried in any freight container or wagon—

(a) LSA-II or LSA-III in the form of combustible solids, liquids or gases; or

(b) SCO,

where the total activity in the freight container or wagon concerned exceeds 100×A₂.

Radiation level limits

22.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), no person shall cause or permit to be carried in any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon any radioactive material where the radiation level, under conditions likely to be encountered in routine carriage, would exceed 2 mSv/h at any point on, and 0·1 mSv/h at 2 m from, the external surfaces of the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned.

(2) No person shall cause or permit to be carried in any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon a consignment under exclusive use where the radiation level exceeds the limits specified in Schedule 11.

Contamination level limits

23.—(1) Subject to paragraph (6), no person shall consign any package or overpack where the level of non-fixed contamination on the external surfaces thereof (in the case of overpacks the external and the internal surfaces thereof) exceeds the limits specified in Table III of paragraph 19 of the Approved Document.

(2) The operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of any package shall ensure that the level of non-fixed contamination on the external surfaces of that package is kept as low as practicable and, under routine carriage conditions, does not exceed the limits specified in Table III of paragraph 19 of the Approved Document.

(3) Subject to paragraph (6), the operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that the level of non-fixed contamination on the external and internal surfaces of the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned does not exceed the levels specified in Table III of paragraph 19 of the Approved Document.

(4) The operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is used routinely for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that the external and internal surfaces of the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned are periodically checked to determine the level of contamination.

(5) The frequency of the periodic checking referred to in paragraph (4) shall be related to the likelihood of contamination and the extent to which radioactive material is carried.

(6) Subject to paragraph (7), the operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon, the surfaces of which have become contaminated above the limits specified in Table III of paragraph 19 of the Approved Document or which show a level in excess of 5μ Sv/h during carriage, shall ensure that the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned—

(a) is decontaminated as soon as possible by a qualified person; and

(b) is not re-used unless—

(i) the level of non-fixed contamination does not exceed the limits specified in Table III of paragraph 19 of the Approved Document, and

(ii) the level of fixed contamination on surfaces after decontamination is less than 5μ Sv/h.

(7) Paragraphs (1), (3) and (6) shall not apply in relation to the internal surfaces of any overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon dedicated to the carriage of LSA material or SCO under exclusive use for so long as the overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned remains under that specific exclusive use.

Carriage in tanks

24.  No person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material in a tank, except where—

(a) the radioactive material is LSA-I or LSA-II; or

(b) the tank conforms to the packaging requirements of a Type A package, a Type B(U) package or a Type B(M) package.

Prohibition on over-filling tank containers and tank wagons

25.  No person shall cause or permit any tank container or tank wagon, or any compartment thereof, to be filled beyond 93% of its capacity with any radioactive material at the reference temperature of 15°C.

Openings, valves and caps of tank containers and tank wagons to be securely closed

26.—(1) Subject to paragraph (3), the operator of any tank container or tank wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that—

(a) all openings in the tank container or tank wagon concerned; and

(b) in the case where any discharge or filling opening in the tank container or tank wagon concerned is fitted with more than one valve or is fitted with a cap, all such valves and that cap,

are securely closed prior to carriage.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), the operator of any train which is being used for the carriage of any tank container or tank wagon containing radioactive material shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that—

(a) all openings in the tank container or tank wagon concerned; and

(b) in the case where any discharge or filling opening in the tank container or tank wagon concerned is fitted with more than one valve or is fitted with a cap, all such valves and that cap,

remain securely closed throughout carriage.

(3) Nothing in paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be taken as permitting the proper functioning of any safety device to be compromised.

Carriage in bulk

27.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), no person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material in bulk.

(2) LSA-I may be carried in bulk provided—

(a) in the case of natural ores it is carried under exclusive use; or

(b) in any other case, it is carried in such a way as to ensure that there can be no escape of contents from the freight container or wagon in which it is being carried and no loss of shielding.

(3) SCO-I may be carried in bulk provided—

(a) it is carried in a freight container or wagon in such a way as to ensure that there can be no escape of contents and no loss of shielding;

(b) where the contamination on the accessible and inaccessible surfaces of the radioactive material is greater than 4 Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters or 0·4 Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters, the material is carried under exclusive use; and

(c) where it is suspected that non-fixed contamination on inaccessible surfaces of the radioactive material is greater than 4 Bq/cm² for beta and gamma emitters and low toxicity alpha emitters or 0·4 Bq/cm² for all other alpha emitters, measures are taken to ensure that the material is not released into the freight container or wagon.

PART VI: LOADING AND UNLOADING

Prohibition of mixed loading and segregation of radioactive material

28.—(1) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any package in a freight container or wagon where the freight container or wagon concerned is being used for the carriage of—

(a) explosives which are subject to the 1983 Regulations other than those explosives within a Compatibility Group whose Compatibility Group Letter is S; or

(b) dangerous goods which are classified in accordance with regulation 5 of the CDGCPL Regulations and which are required by those Regulations to be labelled with a “liable to explosion” subsidiary hazard sign.

(2) No person shall cause or permit to be carried any radioactive material in any freight container or wagon where the freight container or wagon concerned is being used for the carriage of undeveloped photographic film unless the radioactive material is segregated from the film so as to ensure that the radiation exposure of the film due to the carriage of the radioactive material is limited to 0·1 mSv per consignment of film.

(3) No train operator shall cause or permit to be carried any consignment of radioactive material unless that consignment is adequately segregated from any consignment of dangerous goods other than radioactive material carried with it in such a way as to prevent the creation of a significantly greater risk than each of the consignments is liable to create separately.

Loading, stowage and unloading of radioactive material

29.—(1) The operator of a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material and any other person engaged in such carriage shall take such steps as it is reasonable for them respectively to take to ensure that nothing in the manner in which radioactive material is loaded, stowed or unloaded from the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned is liable to create a significant risk or significantly increase any existing risk to the health or safety of any person.

(2)  Without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (1), no person shall cause or permit to be carried any package or overpack in any freight container or wagon unless any requirements specified in Schedule 12 have been complied with.

PART VII: SECURITY MEASURES AND EMERGENCY ARRANGEMENTS

Safe carriage and security

30.  Every person engaged in the carriage of radioactive material shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that—

(a) nothing is done during that carriage to create a significant risk or significantly increase any existing risk to the health or safety of any person; and

(b) unauthorised access to the radioactive material is prevented.

Marshalling and formation of trains

31.  The operator of a train which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that all necessary precautions are taken during the marshalling or formation of that train to prevent the creation of a significant risk or the significant increase of any existing risk to the health or safety of any person.

Prevention of fire, explosion and leakage

32.  No person shall cause or permit anything to be done which is liable to create a significant risk or significantly increase any existing risk of a fire, an explosion or a leakage whilst that material is being carried.

Emergency arrangements

33.  Each train operator, facility owner and infrastructure controller shall—

(a) draw up and, where appropriate, give effect to such safety systems and procedures as will adequately deal with any emergency involving radioactive material—

(i) being carried by the relevant train,

(ii) present at the relevant railway facility, or

(iii) present on the relevant railway track; and

(b) co-operate with each other so as to ensure effective co-ordination of their respective safety systems and procedures.

PART VIII: INFORMATION

Information to be displayed during carriage

34.—(1) The consignor of any package or overpack for carriage shall ensure that prior to carriage information concerning the radioactive contents thereof is displayed on the package or overpack concerned in accordance with Parts I and III of Schedule 13.

(2) The operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that information concerning that material is displayed on the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned in accordance with Parts II and III of Schedule 13.

(3) No person shall cause or permit any of the information referred to in Schedule 13 to be displayed on any package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerning radioactive material which is no longer being carried therein.

(4) No person shall cause or permit any information to be displayed on a package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which would be likely to confuse the emergency services when read in conjunction with any information displayed in accordance with Schedule 13.

(5) Nothing in these Regulations or in the Approved Document shall prevent the display of information, in addition to the information required to be displayed in accordance with Schedule 13, on any package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerning any radioactive material being carried therein, provided such information is not displayed on orange-coloured panels.

(6) The operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that any danger sign, orange-coloured panel or subsidiary hazard sign affixed thereto in accordance with Schedule 13 is clean and free from obstruction when the freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned is handed over to the train operator.

(7) No operator of a train shall cause or permit to be carried therein any radioactive material in a package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon unless he has taken all reasonable steps to ensure that information concerning that material is displayed on the package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon concerned in accordance with Schedule 13.

(8) The operator of a train which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material in a package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that any danger sign, orange-coloured panel or subsidiary hazard sign affixed thereto in accordance with Schedule 13 is kept clean and free from obstruction during carriage.

(9) No person shall—

(a) remove any danger sign, orange-coloured panel or subsidiary hazard sign affixed in accordance with Schedule 13 from a package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material, except for the purpose of updating the information thereon;

(b) falsify any of the information on such a sign or panel.

Information to be compiled and provided by consignors

35.—(1) No consignor shall prepare a package for shipment unless he is in possession of—

(a) all certificates of approval required by these Regulations for the shipment; and

(b) a set of instructions concerning the proper closing of the package or overpack and other preparations for shipment.

(2) The consignor of any radioactive material for carriage in a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon shall—

(a) make available for inspection by the operator thereof, all certificates referred to in paragraph (1)(a); and

(b) ensure that the said operator is provided with the Carriage Information,

prior to carriage.

(3) The consignor of any radioactive material for carriage other than in a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon shall ensure that the operator of the train in which the material is to be carried is provided with the Carriage Information prior to carriage.

(4) No consignor or anyone acting on his behalf shall provide false or misleading information to any operator concerning the consignment.

Carriage Information to be provided by operators

36.—(1) Any operator of a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon who engages another operator of a freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon to carry any of the radioactive material consigned to him for carriage shall ensure that that operator is provided with the Carriage Information, prior to carriage.

(2) The operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is to be used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that each train operator whose train is to be used for the carriage of the material is provided with the Carriage Information prior to carriage.

(3) The operator of any train which is to be used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that each infrastructure controller on whose railway the material is to be carried is provided with the Carriage Information, prior to carriage.

Keeping of Carriage Information

37.  The consignor of any radioactive material, all operators (including the train operator) who carry that material and the infrastructure controller upon whose railway it is carried shall keep a record of the information contained within the Carriage Information for a period of 2 years from the date on which carriage commenced.

Keeping of other information

38.—(1) The consignor of any radioactive material in a package or overpack and the operator of any freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon which is used for the carriage of any radioactive material shall retain any information in their possession derived from any measurements of contamination, taken with a view to ensuring that the duties imposed upon them in regulation 23 are complied with, for a period of 2 years from the date on which carriage commenced.

(2) The designer, manufacturer and consignor of any package, packaging or special form radioactive material shall retain any information in their possession relating to the design, manufacture, testing, maintenance of that package, packaging or special form radioactive material, including (without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing) specifications, calculations, test results, quality assurance programmes and manufacturing records, for so long as the package, packaging or special form radioactive material is in use for the carriage of radioactive material.

Information, instruction and training for train crews and other persons connected with the carriage of radioactive material

39.—(1) The operator of any train which is being used for the carriage of radioactive material shall ensure that those members of the crew of that train who have responsibilities in connection with the carriage of that material have received adequate information, instruction and training to enable them to understand—

(a) the nature of the dangers to which the radioactive material being carried may give rise and the action they should take in an emergency concerning such material; and

(b) their duties under these Regulations and sections 7 and 8 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

(2) The train operator shall keep a record of any training received by members of a train crew pursuant to paragraph (1) whilst in his employment and shall make available a copy of that record to the crew members concerned.

(3) The infrastructure controller shall ensure that those of his employees who have responsibilities in connection with the carriage of radioactive material on his railway have received adequate information, instruction and training to enable them to understand—

(a) the nature of the dangers to which the radioactive material being carried may give rise and the action they should take in an emergency concerning such material; and

(b) their duties under these Regulations and sections 7 and 8 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

(4) The infrastructure controller shall keep a record of any training received by employees pursuant to paragraph (3), and shall make available a copy of that record to the employees concerned.

PART IX:MISCELLANEOUS

Evaluation of radiation emissions

40.  For the purpose of ensuring that the carriage of radioactive material does not cause any injury to health or any damage to the environment, the Secretary of State shall arrange for periodic assessments to be carried out to evaluate the radiation emissions arising from such carriage.

Exemption certificates

41.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), and to any provisions imposed by the Communities in respect of the transport of radioactive material by rail, the Health and Safety Executive may, by a certificate in writing, exempt—

(a) any person or class of persons;

(b) any radioactive material; or

(c) any package, overpack, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon,

from all or any of the requirements or prohibitions imposed by these Regulations and any such exemption may be granted subject to conditions and to a limit of time and may be revoked by the Health and Safety Executive by a certificate in writing at any time.

(2) The Health and Safety Executive shall not grant any such exemption unless, having regard to the circumstances of the case and in particular to—

(a) any conditions which it proposes to attach to the exemption; and

(b) any other requirements imposed by or under any enactments which apply to the case,

it is satisfied that neither the health or safety of persons who are likely to be affected by the exemption will be prejudiced in consequence of it.

(3) The Secretary of State for Defence may, in the interests of national security, by a certificate in writing, exempt any person from all or any of the requirements or prohibitions imposed by these Regulations insofar as they relate to the carriage of any radioactive material and any such exemption may be granted subject to conditions and to a limit of time and may be revoked by the said Secretary of State at any time by a further certificate in writing.

Defence

42.—(1) In any proceedings for an offence consisting of a contravention of any of the provisions of these Regulations it shall be a defence, subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), for the person charged to prove—

(a) that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person not being one of his employees (hereinafter called `the other person'); and

(b) that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid commission of the offence.

(2) The person charged shall not be entitled to rely upon the defence referred to in paragraph (1) without leave of the court unless, within a period ending seven clear days—

(a) before the hearing to determine the mode of trial, where the proceedings are in England or Wales; or

(b) before the trial, where the proceedings are in Scotland,

he has served on the prosecutor a notice in writing giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of the other person as was then in his possession.

(3) For the purpose of enabling the other person to be charged with and convicted of the offence by virtue of section 36 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, a person who establishes a defence under this regulation shall nevertheless be treated for the purposes of that section as having committed the offence.

International provisions

43.—(1) Where, in relation to the carriage of any radioactive material, any provision of regulations 3 to 29, 34 to 38 and 40 applies to a matter to which any specified international provision applies, it shall be sufficient compliance, in relation to that matter, with the provision of the particular regulation if the specified international provision is satisfied in respect of that matter.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), the specified international provision means any provision of—

(a) ADR;

(b) the IMDG Code; or

(c) the Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air, as revised or re-issued from time to time by the International Civil Aviation Organisation(20).

Transitional defence

44.  In any proceedings for an offence consisting of a contravention of any of the provisions of these Regulations prior to 1sst January 1997, it shall be a defence for the accused to prove that the radioactive material was carried, or, in the case of an alleged contravention of regulation 35, intended to be carried before 1st January 1997, in a package, freight container, tank container, tank wagon or wagon in accordance with the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail Regulations 1994.

Signed by the Authority of the Secretary of State for Transport.

John Bovis

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State,

Department of Transport

8th August 1996