I move amendment No. 1:—
Before Section 2 to insert the following new section:—
2. In its application to a ship to which this Act applies, Section 1 of the Principal Act shall be construed and have effect subject to the following modifications, that is to say, for the reference to a natural born British subject there shall be substituted a reference to an Irish citizen, for every reference to naturalisation by process of British law there shall be substituted a reference to naturalisation by virtue of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, 1935, and every other expression in the said sub-section shall be construed in relation to this provision and the Principal Act shall have effect accordingly.
This amendment is related to the matter which was discussed on the Second Stage of the Bill. The House will recall that on that occasion I drew attention to the provisions of this Bill in relation to the flag and expressed some doubt as to what was an Irish ship for the purposes of this Act, so far as the use of the Irish flag is concerned. In the discussion which followed, the Minister made a statement which did not improve the position from my point of view, which, in fact, rather disimproved it. The Minister, at column 1538 of the Seanad Official Debates of the 11th November, said:—
"So far as admission to the Irish register is concerned, there was an agreement made in 1931 that we would admit to the register here only vessels which were owned by Irish citizens or by citizens in Commonwealth countries. That agreement was never ratified in legislation, but it has determined the practice since."
I do not know whether it was generally known that an agreement of that character existed. Apparently, in law, it has no binding effect, but, in practice, it determines the attitude of our Government towards the registration of foreign-owned ships in this country.
Speaking of the future, the Minister said:—
"I think it is probable, having regard to our circumstances, that when we come to prepare the comprehensive legislation we will admit to our register ships owned by British citizens, or owned by Irish citizens in partnership with British citizens."
It is obviously the intention of the Government, therefore, that a ship which is owned, either in whole or in part, by non-nationals may be registered at any of our ports. That, in my opinion, is a rather serious matter, and I submit further that it is an act directly forbidden by Section 1 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894. That section provides, in relation to British ships, the categories of persons or corporate bodies which may register a ship at a British port. There are four such categories, namely, natural-born British subjects, persons naturalised in pursuance of an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, persons made denizens of the United Kingdom and bodies corporate established under and subject to the laws of some part of his Majesty's Dominions.
Under the Adaptation of Enactments Act, 1922, British Statutes were carried over in this country and given effect to, subject to certain modifications. These modifications in general amount to something like this—that where the words "United Kingdom" are used in a British Statute they shall mean, in the application of that Statute to Ireland, "Ireland", and similar modifications apply in regard to other expressions. These words are declared, in the Adaptation of Enactments Act, to have a special meaning in the application of British Statutes to Ireland. If that is so and if the Adaptation of Enactments Act is deemed to apply to the merchant shipping law of this country—and I submit it must be so deemed, since otherwise we have no merchant shipping law at all—it means that Section 1 of the British Act of 1894 must be construed as limiting the right of registration to ships which are owned by Irish citizens or bodies corporate according to our law. I submit, therefore, that the agreement referred to by the Minister, the agreement made in 1931, permitting foreigners to register ships in an Irish port, is unauthorised by the law.
The use of the flag by a shipowner is of not merely national but of international importance. For instance, in the event of war, the protection of an Irish ship, if we are neutral, depends on the use of the Irish flag. Now, if a British concern, say the B. and I. or the L.M.S., should register a ship in this country and fly the Irish flag, carrying munitions of war for Great Britain, is not our neutrality imperilled? Some of those ships used by British companies in our ports were diverted during the last war to the service of the British Navy. One of them, I think, was lost outside Dunkirk.
The matter is of considerable importance, not merely now, but in the future. If there is another outbreak of war and the nations of the world are again in conflict — and that eventuality cannot be dismissed—the use of the Irish flag at sea or in any foreign port is of the first importance to the people of this country. If we are in the war, it does not matter whether we carry an Irish flag or the flag of the country with which we are associated in carrying on the war; but if we continue to be neutral in the next war, it is of considerable importance to us now that we would determine that the only ships which would fly the Irish flag abroad are those owned by Irish nationals, citizens over whose conduct we will have control, and that we will ensure that those ships will not be used to carry contraband or to assist any of the parties engaged in the war so as to imperil our neutrality.
It is probably late in the session to raise a matter of this character, but it is the only opportunity we have, or may have for years to come, to define for ourselves what is to be the attitude of the Irish Government towards the use of the Irish flag at sea and in foreign ports. I would urge on the House that before assent is given to this Bill the House should be satisfied on the major point I have raised, that is, that the Irish flag may be used only on an Irish ship owned by Irish citizens over whom we have complete control, not merely in relation to the ship but in relation to their conduct generally. I admit at once that the amendment is probably not skilfully drawn. It was drawn primarily for the purpose of directing attention to the issue involved. If the House accepts the principle of the amendment, it can be put in a different form on the Report Stage of the Bill.