- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As made)
The Fishing Vessels (Codes of Practice) Regulations 2017
You are here:
- UK Statutory Instruments
- 2017 No. 943
- Explanatory Note
What Version
Advanced Features
- Show Geographical Extent(e.g. England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)
- Show Timeline of Changes
Changes to legislation:
There are currently no known outstanding effects for the The Fishing Vessels (Codes of Practice) Regulations 2017.
Changes to Legislation
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. At the current time any known changes or effects made by subsequent legislation have been applied to the text of the legislation you are viewing by the editorial team. Please see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ for details regarding the timescales for which new effects are identified and recorded on this site.
Explanatory Note
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations revise the certification regime applicable to United Kingdom fishing vessels, and non-United Kingdom fishing vessels operating in United Kingdom waters. In order to obtain a Certificate of Compliance, a vessel must comply with an applicable Code of Practice, determinable by the size of the fishing vessel and the waters within which it operates. The Codes of Practice deal with the safe operation, construction and equipping of fishing vessels. They implement Council Directive 93/103/EC of 23rd November 1993 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for work on board fishing vessels and Council Directive 97/70/EC of 11th December 1997 setting up a harmonised safety regime for fishing vessels of 24 metres in length and over, as amended by Commission Directive 2002/35/EC.
Regulation 3 contains provisions relating to application.
The Regulations prohibit the use of fishing vessels on a voyage without a certificate of compliance issued by the Secretary of State, following a survey or inspection (regulations 4 and 5). If a fishing vessel is involved in an accident, the Secretary of State must be notified. The Secretary of State may require further inspections and surveys to be carried out (regulation 6). The owner of a fishing vessel must notify the Secretary of State of any proposed alterations or modifications to be made to the vessel, and the Secretary of State may require further inspections and surveys to be carried out (regulation 7).
Regulations 8 and 9 provide for suspension and cancellation of certificates and regulation 10 requires a certificate to be produced on demand by specified officials.
The Secretary of State may require small fishing vessels to be presented for inspection and it is an offence to fail to report for such an inspection (regulation 11).
The Secretary of State has power to inspect and detain all sizes of fishing vessels, including non-United Kingdom fishing vessels. The latter are required to be certified by their flag State as being compliant with the provisions of the Torremolinos Protocol of 1993 relating to the Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels 1977, and to continue to so comply while within United Kingdom waters (regulations 12-15). Regulation 16 provides a right of appeal against detention, and for compensation to be payable for unjustifiable detention.
Regulations 17 and 18 provide for the Secretary of State to permit equipment equivalent to that specified in an applicable Code of Practice to be used, or to grant exemptions from a Code of Practice, if satisfied that this does not compromise safety.
Regulation 19 provides for the Statutory Instruments listed in the Schedule to be revoked: these Instruments are mainly Rules and Regulations relating to safety of fishing vessels, and which are superseded by the provisions of these Regulations. Two revoked Instruments relate to the previous implementation of Council and Commission Directives which are also superseded by these Regulations. Regulation 20 makes two transitional provisions.
Regulation 21 requires the Secretary of State to review the operation and effect of the Regulations and to publish a report within five years after they come into force, and every five years after that. Following a review it will fall to the Secretary of State to consider whether the Regulations should remain as they are, or be revoked or be amended. A further instrument would be needed to revoke the Regulations or to amend them. A full impact assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the costs of business and the voluntary sector is published with the Explanatory Memorandum, to which a Transposition Note is annexed, alongside the instrument at www.legislation.gov.uk.
Options/Help
Print Options
PrintThe Whole Instrument
PrintThis Explanatory Note only
Legislation is available in different versions:
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
See additional information alongside the content
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Opening Options
Different options to open legislation in order to view more content on screen at once
Explanatory Memorandum
Explanatory Memorandum sets out a brief statement of the purpose of a Statutory Instrument and provides information about its policy objective and policy implications. They aim to make the Statutory Instrument accessible to readers who are not legally qualified and accompany any Statutory Instrument or Draft Statutory Instrument laid before Parliament from June 2004 onwards.
More Resources
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
- the original print PDF of the as enacted version that was used for the print copy
- lists of changes made by and/or affecting this legislation item
- confers power and blanket amendment details
- all formats of all associated documents
- correction slips
- links to related legislation and further information resources
Impact Assessments
Impact Assessments generally accompany all UK Government interventions of a regulatory nature that affect the private sector, civil society organisations and public services. They apply regardless of whether the regulation originates from a domestic or international source and can accompany primary (Acts etc) and secondary legislation (SIs). An Impact Assessment allows those with an interest in the policy area to understand:
- Why the government is proposing to intervene;
- The main options the government is considering, and which one is preferred;
- How and to what extent new policies may impact on them; and,
- The estimated costs and benefits of proposed measures.
Timeline of Changes
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
More Resources
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
- the original print PDF of the as made version that was used for the print copy
- correction slips
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including:
- lists of changes made by and/or affecting this legislation item
- confers power and blanket amendment details
- all formats of all associated documents
- links to related legislation and further information resources
All content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. This site additionally contains content derived from EUR-Lex, reused under the terms of the Commission Decision 2011/833/EU on the reuse of documents from the EU institutions. For more information see the EUR-Lex public statement on re-use.