Marine Order 25, issue 7 Amendment 2012 (No. 1)

Explanatory Statement

Marine Order 25, issue 7 (Equipment — life-saving) Amendment 2012 (No. 1) (Order 2012/11)

Equipment — life-saving

Authority

1.    Subsection 191(1) of the Navigation Act 1912 (the Navigation Act) provides that the regulations may provide for giving effect to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).
2.    Section 215 of the Navigation Act provides that the regulations may provide for the saving of life at sea, including appliances to be carried and the measures to be observed, on ships for the saving of life at sea.
3.    Subsection 425(1) of the Navigation Act provides for regulations about matters required or permitted to be prescribed or which are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
4.    Subsection 425 (1AA) of the Navigation Act allows the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) to make orders for any matter in that Act for or in relation to which provision may be made by regulations.
5.    This Order was made under subsection 425(1AA) and is a legislative instrument for the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

Purpose

6.      This Order updates a reference in Marine Order 25 to Part III of SOLAS to refer to a resolution of the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) that adopts amendments to that Part of SOLAS. The Order also updates the definition of the International Life-Saving Appliance Code (LSA Code) to include amendments to the LSA Code adopted by another MSC resolution. Both these amendments enter into force on 1 January 2013.

7.      The Order also updates a reference to the Revised recommendations on testing of life-saving appliances to refer to a recent MSC resolution that adopted amendments to the revised recommendations.

Consultation

8.      A copy of the draft of this instrument was circulated to 13 industry organisations and 1 government agency. A copy of the draft was also placed on the AMSA website for public comment. Only 1 comment was received which was to the effect that they had no comment on the draft.

9.      The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) has advised that the Order will have minor and machinery impacts and therefore no Regulation Impact Statement is required (OBPR ID: 2012/14486).

Documents incorporated by reference

10.  The following documents, as updated by this Order, are incorporated by reference in Marine Order 25:

• the LSA Code;
• the Revised recommendation on testing of life-saving appliances (adopted by IMO Resolution MSC.81(70)) as amended.

11.  The LSA Code is in IMO resolution MSC.48.66 adopting the Code and subsequent MSC resolutions adopting amendments to the Code (resolutions MSC.207(81), MSC.218(82), MSC.272(85), MSC.293(87) and MSC.320(89)). These resolutions are available from the IMO website at http://www.imo.org. A 2010 consolidated edition of the LSA Code is also available from the IMO.

12.  The Revised recommendation on testing of life-saving appliances are in IMO Resolution MSC.81(70) and subsequent MSC resolutions adopting amendments to the revised recommendations (resolutions MSC.200(80), MSC.226(82), MSC.274(85), MSC.295(87), MSC.321(89), MSC.323(89) and A.520(13)). These resolutions are also available from the IMO website at http://www.imo.org.

Commencement

13.  This Order commences on 1 January 2013.

Contents of this instrument

14.  Item 1 updates a note about SOLAS, Chapter III (Life-saving appliances and arrangements), to refer to a recent MSC resolution that adopted amendments to that Chapter of SOLAS. These amendments enter into force on 1 January 2013.

15.  Item 2 updates the definition of LSA Code to refer to a recent MSC resolution that adopted amendments to the LSA Code. Those amendments enter into force on 1 January 2013 and relate to enhanced safety arrangements for lifeboats.

16.  Item 3 updates a reference to the IMO requirements for the testing of life-saving appliances to refer to amendments to those requirements recently adopted by the IMO.  These more detailed testing requirements are based on the requirements of the LSA Code. The IMO has recommended that Governments apply these amendments to those requirements when testing life-saving appliances.

Compatibility with human rights

17.  AMSA considers that this instrument is compatible with human rights. It does not affect any rights or freedoms to which the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 applies.

Making the instrument

18.  This instrument has been made by the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, in accordance with subsection 49(4) of the Australian Maritime Authority Act 1990.