Merchant Shipping (Safety and Load Line Conventions) Act 1932

11 Issue of safety certificates and passenger steamers' exemption certificates.

(1) If the Board of Trade, on receipt of declarations of survey in respect of a passenger steamer, are satisfied that the steamer complies with all the construction regulations, rules for life-saving appliances and wireless telegraphy rules applicable to passenger steamers plying on international voyages, the Board shall, on the application of the owner of the steamer, issue in respect of the steamer a safety certificate stating that the steamer complies with the requirements of the Safety Convention, and any certificate issued under this subsection is hereafter in this Part of this Act referred to as " a general safety certificate."

(2) If, on receipt of declarations of survey in respect of a passenger steamer in the case of which the Board of Trade have modified the construction regulations or the rules for life-saving appliances in pursuance of the foregoing provisions of this Act relating to steamers plying on short international voyages, the Board are satisfied that the steamer complies with the said regulations and rules as so modified, and also complies with the wireless telegraphy rules applicable to steamers plying on international voyages, the Board shall, on the application of the owner of the steamer, issue in respect of the steamer a safety certificate stating that the steamer complies with the requirements of the Safety Convention applicable to a short international voyage, and any certificate issued under this subsection is hereafter in this Part of this Act referred to as " a short voyage safety certificate."

(3) If the Board of Trade, on receipt of declarations of survey in respect of a passenger steamer, are satisfied that the steamer—

(a) complies with all the construction regulations and rules for life-saving appliances applicable to passenger steamers plying on international voyages or with those regulations and rules as modified in her case in pursuance of the foregoing provisions of this Act relating to steamers plying on short international voyages, and also is exempt under the Merchant Shipping (Wireless Telegraphy) Act, 1919, from the obligations imposed by that Act; or

(b) complies with the construction regulations and the rules for life-saving appliances applicable to steamers plying on any international coasting voyage or steamers engaged in any special passenger trade, and also either complies with the wireless telegraphy rules applicable to steamers plying on international voyages or is exempt under the Merchant Shipping (Wireless Telegraphy) Act, 1919, from the obligations imposed by that Act;

the Board shall, on the application of the owner of the steamer, issue in respect of the steamer—

(i) a safety certificate stating in what respects the steamer complies with the requirements of the Safety Convention; and

(ii) an exemption certificate stating that so long as the steamer plies on the voyages, and is engaged in the trades, and complies with the conditions (if any) specified in the certificate, the steamer is exempt in other respects from the requirements of the said Convention;

and any safety certificate and exemption certificate issued under this subsection are hereafter in this Part of this Act respectively referred to as " a qualified safety certificate " and " a passenger steamer's exemption certificate. "

(4) For the purposes of this section, the Board of Trade may treat—

(a) any passenger steamer constructed before the first day of July, nineteen hundred and thirty-one, (not being a steamer converted to passenger service on or after that date) as complying with the construction regulations applicable in the circumstances; and

(b) any passenger steamer constructed before the first day of July, nineteen hundred and thirty-one, as complying with the rules for life-saving appliances applicable in the circumstances;

if they are satisfied that such steps (if any) as are reasonable and practicable have been taken to make the steamer comply with those regulations or rules, as the case may be.

(5) The provisions of this section shall, subject to the provisions hereafter contained in this Part of this Act, apply only to British passenger steamers registered in the United Kingdom.