The UK Chamber applauds UK Ship Register’s (UKSR) changes, according to which owners from a broader group of countries will be able to register their vessels in the UK. UKSR announced its decision on expanding its ownership eligibility, enabling more shipping companies from around the globe to flag to the UK.
IMO’s HTW 6 Sub-committee on 29 April-3 May considered matters relating to the list of STCW Parties (White List) and its review. The Sub-committee found that the white list of top-rated flag states would be decimated if requirements to report information were strictly enforced.
In its annual PSC report for 2018, USCG informed the flag administration safety performance for 2018 decreased slightly with the overall annual detention rate increasing from 0.98% to 1.16%, while security performance for 2018 decreased slightly resulting in the annual Control Action Ratio (CAR) increasing from 0.06% to 0.09%.
The US Coast Guard has included the Liberian flag in its QUALSHIP 21 (QS21) roster for 2019-2020. QS21 recognizes vessels and flag states which have successfully met specified safety and quality requirements and regulations when calling at ports in the US.
Cyprus has seen merchant shipping developing rapidly over the last decades, ranking the country amongst the main maritime powers of the world with the 11th largest fleet globally and the 3rd largest fleet in Europe. More than 20% of the worlds’ third party management fleet is managed by companies based in Cyprus.
British ferry operator P&O will re-flag to Cyprus two of its UK ships operating on the English Channel route to France, in a bid to preserve the tonnage tax financing arrangements, ‘under which the ships should remain flagged in an EU member state’.
As part of its recent efforts to eliminate substandard shipping, the UAE’s Federal Transport Authority issued a circular mandating that ships under 25 flags should be classified by a member society in the IACS or by UAE classification society (Tasneef), if they are to call UAE Ports or anchor in UAE waters.
Human Rights at Sea in partnership with University of Bristol Human Rights Clinic and Human Rights Implementation Centre have published the first report on ‘Flag States and Human Rights’. The report is a study on flag state practice in monitoring, reporting and enforcing human rights obligations onboard vessels.
At its 51st meeting last month, Paris MoU approved the 2017 inspection results and adopted new performance lists for flags and Recognized Organizations, to take effect from 1 July 2018. This year’s White List has decreased by two, while Grey List and Black List have been increased by one respectively.
In its Port State Control Annual Report for 2017, the USCG revealed that detention regarding Flag Administrations from 2015 to 2017 have decreased slightly, as they have gown to 1.40%, from 1.59%. This indicates a better performance from Flag Administrations. Flags with only one detention in the past three years are removed from the targeted flag list.
