The Sea Fishing (Days in Port) (Amendment) Regulations 1992

• Citation: S.I. 1992/670
• Sections: 7

Section 1 Title, commencement and interpretation

(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Sea Fishing (Days in Port) (Amendment) Regulations 1992 and shall come into force on 12th March 1992.

(2) In these Regulations “the principal Regulations ” means the Sea Fishing (Days in Port) Regulations 1992 .

Section 2 Amendment of the principal Regulations

The principal Regulations are hereby amended in accordance with regulations 3 to 7 below.

Section 3 Amendment of the principal Regulations

In regulation 2(1) thereof (interpretation)–

(a) there shall be inserted after the words “In these Regulations–” the following definition–

“the appropriate Minister” means–

in relation to England, the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food,

in relation to Scotland or Wales, the Secretary of State,

in relation to Northern Ireland, the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland;

(b) there shall be inserted after the definition of “British sea-fishery officer” the following definition–

“the Commission Decision” means the Commission Decision of 24th February 1992 exempting the United Kingdom from the obligation contained in Article 13 of Council Regulation ( EEC ) No. 3882/91 ;

Section 4 Amendment of the principal Regulations

For regulation 4 thereof (management of days in port) there shall be substituted the following regulations–

(4)

(1) Unless exempted by the appropriate Minister in accordance with either paragraph (4) or paragraph (5) below, a vessel to which these Regulations apply shall, subject to paragraph (8) below, remain in port for one or more periods totalling 135 days during the period 1st February 1992 to 31st December 1992.

(2) Where exempted by the appropriate Minister in accordance with paragraph (5) below, a vessel to which these Regulations apply shall, subject to paragraph (8) below, remain in port for one or more periods totalling 67 days during the period 1st February 1992 to 31st December 1992.

(3) An application for exemption shall be in writing given by the master, owner or charterer of the vessel to the appropriate Minister before 31st March 1992.

(4) If he is satisfied that a vessel will carry from 15th April 1992 only the fishing gear prescribed by paragraph (i) of Article 1 of the Commission Decision, that is to say, longlines or nets having a mesh size equal to or greater than 120 millimetres, with or without a 110 millimetre square mesh panel, the appropriate Minister shall grant the vessel total exemption from the requirement to remain in port for 135 days.

(5) If he is satisfied that a vessel will carry from 15th April 1992 only the fishing gear prescribed by paragraph (ii) of Article 1 of the Commission Decision, that is to say, nets having a mesh equal to or greater than 110 millimetres, with or without a 100 millimetre square mesh size panel, the appropriate Minister shall grant the vessel exemption from 68 days of the requirement to remain in port for 135 days.

(6) If, at any time after exemption has been granted in respect of a fishing vessel, the appropriate Minister is satisfied that there has been a failure to carry only therelevant fishing gear prescribed by Article 1 of the Commission Decision or a contravention of any of the conditions relating to that gear set out in the Annex to that Decision, he may withdraw the exemption.

(7) The appropriate Minister shall notify the applicant for exemption in writing of the date from which exemption is withdrawn.

(8) Where an exemption has been withdrawn in accordance with paragraph (6) above, the vessel concerned shall remain in port from the date of the withdrawal of the exemption up to 31st December 1992 for a total number of days calculated in accordance with the formula set out below, namely,

where

“A” equals the number of days in port required as a result of the application of Article 1 of the Commission Decision; “B” equals the number of days from 1st February 1992 to the day before the date of withdrawal; “C” equals the number of days from the date of withdrawal to 31st December 1992; and “D” equals the number of days during which the vessel has remained in port in accordance with these Regulations.

(4A)

(1) A period in port may consist of a single day or of a group of days taken consecutively.

(2) No period in port shall count for the purposes of regulation 4(1), 4(2) or 4(8) above unless–

(a) it consists of at least one day,

(b) it is notified in accordance with regulation 5, and

(c) where paragraph (4) below applies, the requirements of that paragraph are satisfied.

(3) Once a period has been notified and has commenced the vessel concerned shall remain in port until either that period has expired or a revised period notified in accordance with regulation 5(4) has expired.

(4) Where the port in which the vessel is to remain is not in the United Kingdom the master, owner or charterer shall within 14 days of the expiry of the period in port furnish to the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland in the case of a vessel licensed by that Department or to a British sea-fishery officer in any other case a statement signed and dated by the authority in charge of that port containing the particulars specified in Schedule 2.

Section 5 Amendment of the principal Regulations

In regulation 5 thereof (notice of intended period in port) in paragraph (4) the words “at least 9 hours” shall be omitted.

Section 6 Amendment of the principal Regulations

In regulation 6 thereof (offences) in paragraph (1) for the words “regulation 4(1) or 4(4)” there shall be substituted the words “regulation 4(1), 4(2), 4(8) or 4A(3)”.

Section 7 Amendment of the principal Regulations

In the second paragraph of Schedule 1 (sea areas)–

(a) in the heading to that paragraph for the words “(Area VI )” there shall be substituted the words “(Area VIa)”;

(b) in the third line for “18°00'” there shall be substituted “12°00'”.