Séamus Pattison
Ceist:22 Mr. Pattison asked the Minister for the Marine if he will outline the rules and regulations regarding the carriage of children on pleasure boats.
Ceisteanna-Questions. Oral Answers. - Marine Safety.
Eamon Gilmore
Ceist:23 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for the Marine if any inquiry has been held to establish the cause of the fire on board the MV St. Columba on 31 January 1990 and the steps which are being taken to ensure the safety of passengers and crews of car ferries serving this country.
Tomás MacGiolla
Ceist:29 Tomás Mac Giolla asked the Minister for the Marine when he intends to bring before Dáil Eireann a Bill to bring within the scope of the Merchant Shipping Acts, the licensing and regulation of vessels which carry 12 passengers or less and which would require all vessels to carry safety equipment including lifejackets.
(Limerick West): I propose taking Questions Nos. 22, 23 and 29 together. As the passenger vessel St. Columba is registered in the United Kingdom and as the fire on board the vessel occurred while it was within UK territorial waters, the accident investigation unit of the UK Department of Transport is the appropriate body to carry out an inquiry into the incident. The UK Department of Transport has promised to forward to me a copy of the findings of its preliminary inquiry into the incident when this has been completed. There has also been direct contact between my Department and Sealink on this matter.
The Merchant Shipping Acts, which are administered by my Department, apply to vessels which carry more than 12 passengers to sea or on rivers, canals, lakes or estuaries. Such vessels are required to hold a valid passenger certificate and are subject to annual surveys conducted by marine surveyors of my Department. Random inspections are also carried out in order to ensure compliance with various rules and regulations relating to life-saving and fire appliances and other safety equipment.
Forty vessels now hold valid passenger certificates and steps have been taken to ensure that overloading does not occur on such vessels and that all vessels carrying more than 12 passengers hold valid certificates. Regular publicity campaigns are launched in conjunction with the National Safety Council and particularly during the summer bank holiday weekends in order to warn the public of the dangers of travelling on board unlicensed or overloaded passenger vessels. Increased liaison has been effected with local gardaí who now maintain an active presence at piers and at other passenger boarding points in order to ensure the carriage of the required safety equipment and to prevent overloading. All reported cases of overloading are vigorously pursued. In 1989 alone proceedings were taken against the operators in 32 cases of reported overloading.
Foreign registered passenger vessels operating from Irish ports are inspected by my survey staff at least every six months, under the provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control. The latter is an agreement between the maritime authorities of 14 European countries aimed at ensuring that ships comply with international safety, pollution prevention and other standards. All deficiencies found during inspection are reported to the Port State Control Computer Centre in France. In addition, vessels may be detained to rectify deficiencies, allowed to proceed to the next port where the deficiencies must be rectified or given 14 days to rectify the deficiencies, depending on their gravity.
There are no specific provisions governing the carriage of children on board pleasure craft. For the purposes of the Merchant Shipping Acts, children are treated as passengers for the carriage of whom vessels must comply with the requirements already mentioned.
I am calling Deputy Gilmore whose Question No. 23 refers.
Do I understand from the Minister's reply that despite the fact that this fire took place a number of weeks ago, he does not yet know the cause of or how serious the fire was which delayed the vessel reaching port several hours? Does he know the cause of the accident or the cause of the fire?
(Limerick West): As I have already outlined, the UK Department of Transport have promised to forward me a copy of the findings of their preliminary inquiries into the incident when the inquiry has been completed. In the first instance it is a matter for the UK Department of Transport.
This vessel is one of the major carriers of sea passengers to and from this country. Surely the Minister should by now know the cause of this fire. Has he not established this information from the company or through his own investigations or directly from the UK Department of Transport? Surely it is not necessary to wait for a formal report from the UK Department of Transport to establish the cause of the fire? Can the Minister say whether his Department know the cause of the fire?
(Limerick West): As I said, this fire occurred on board the vessel while it was in UK territorial waters. Therefore, the accident investigation unit of the UK Department of Transport is the appropriate body to carry out an inquiry into the incident. I am awaiting that report.
The Minister says he does not know the cause of the accident.
That disposes of questions for today.