MERCHANT SHIPPING BILL

Order for Second Reading read. 1.47 pm

The Minister of State for Communications (Mr Goh Chee Wee): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

The existing Merchant Shipping Act (1985 edition) was inherited from the British and contained many provisions governing various aspects of the functions of the Marine Department. As part of its regular review of legislation to bring it in line with current international practices and our needs, the Marine Department had done a complete review of the Act. In the course of the review, the Marine Department had consulted various public and private sector organisations involved such as shipowners through the Singapore National Shipping Association, seafarers through their unions, shipping employers through the Singapore Maritime Employers' Federation, TDB, Immigration Department and PSA. The result is a completely new Merchant Shipping Bill 1995 which seeks to repeal and re-enact with amendments the existing Merchant Shipping Act.

Besides the removal of obsolete provisions and the updating of certain provisions, the new Act will contain the essential provisions while most of the detailed administrative and procedural provisions will be moved to subsidiary legislation. In this way, the new Act will be flexible enough to adapt quickly to continuing changes in the shipping industry. The provisions which are removed and incorporated in the new regulations relate mainly to matters concerning the crew on board Singapore ships like crew agreements, the engagement and discharge of seamen, payment of wages and account of wages, and the keeping of official log books.

We have added a provision to empower the Minister to reduce or vary the fee for registration of ships as circumstances warrant. This is to enable our Registry of Ships to respond quickly to competition, as we need to keep the registration fee attractive to international shipping. This will help build up our status as an international maritime centre.

Register books are where records of Singapore ships are kept. They serve as registers of titles to the ships, and hence new provisions concerning register books are introduced. In keeping with its importance, provisions relating to entries, amendments, rectification of clerical errors, and substantive law on ownership are introduced to regulate and facilitate the maintenance of these record books.

The Bill also contains a provision to empower the Minister to make regulations for the registration of bareboat chartered ships and to allow Singapore ships to be bareboat chartered out and registered in other countries. Our law currently allows the registration of a ship under the name of its legal owner only. Bareboat registration allows the registration to be done under the name of the charterer. The advantage of bareboat registration is that it allows the charterers the flexibility to charter the ship and register it with our Registry without having to buy over the vessel. At the same time, charterers enjoy the privileges accorded to the flag, eg, under bilateral shipping agreements. It also allows owners to structure their set-up for maximum advantage.

An increasing number of countries, including the UK, are allowing bareboat registration. Hence, if Singapore is to retain its competitive edge, we will need to offer at least the same facilities.

The demand for the registration of pleasure crafts is increasing, especially with Singapore's growing affluence. Registration confers nationality which a pleasure craft needs when sailing into international waters or calling at other ports. The Bill therefore provides for regulations for the registration of pleasure crafts.

Other new provisions include imposing a duty on the master of a ship involved in a collision to assist the other ship, requiring the registration of births and deaths on Singapore ships and enabling the crew of a Singapore ship to claim to be discharged if the ship ceases to be registered in Singapore.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House.

The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Mr Goh Chee Wee].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.