The inspection of ships to ensure compliance with internationally agreed standards, and which is known as Port State Control, is the first line of defence against casualties and pollution. It will continue to be so until international standards are properly and consistently applied by all flag States.
It is also the case that no system of Port State Control can be fully effective without co-operation between states of a particular region. International safety conventions provide the basis for such inspections, but the key framework is the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control which has been in operation since 1982. This is an agreement between Ireland and 14 other European countries as well as Canada. Its function is to operate as a harmonised and co-ordinated system of inspection by the Port States and to target and identify deficiencies. It is estimated that about 80 per cent of ships entering Paris MOU ports are inspected at least once a year. The most recent annual report shows that over 45 per cent of the nearly 15,000 inspections carried out in 1992 revealed deficiencies of varying degrees. Some 5 per cent were so deficient they had to be detained.
European Port State Control has undoubtedly been an effective weapon in our efforts to tackle the global problem of sub-standard shipping. It has its limitations, however, and there is general agreement among members that the system needs to be strengthened and extended. A Ministerial Conference on Port State Control will be held in Copenhagen next September to agree improvements to the system. Ireland is fully supportive of these initiatives.
In addition, the EU is also working on proposals to improve enforcement of many of the existing practices of Port State Control. I agree that better enforcement is vital if Port State Control is to be more effective and Ireland is actively involved in the work now underway to bring the EU proposals to fruition.