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Flags Of Convenience

Volume 172: debated on Thursday 17 May 1990

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To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those countries where ships are registered which are deemed by his Department to operate flags of convenience.

The Department does not categorise the registers of other countries. The Government are however concerned that flag states live up to their international obligations. As one of the parties to the Paris memorandum on port state control, we more than meet our obligations to inspect foreign ships in British ports.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many accidents at sea occurring in (a) British waters and (b) the English channel during the last 10 years have involved either (i) oil tankers or (ii) any other ship flying a flag of convenience; and if he will express this as a percentage of all accidents in both cases.

The information is available for United Kingdom vessels only on a worldwide basis. The numbers of accidents involving United Kingdom tankers, expressed as a percentage of the total number of accidents involving United Kingdom vessels, in each of the last 10 years is:

YearNumberPer cent.
19798214
19807414
19816512
19826711
19835411
19845611
1985367
19863910

Year

Number

Per cent.

1987194
1988183