CONFIDENTIAL
establish a national shipping authority (the NSA (UK)), which would
meet the obligation described in paragraph 1(b) of the annex. It
would be set up as part of the Department of Transport. Its role
would not however
solely be to meet the UK'S interests in and
obligations to the NATO pool; there would be UK control of merchant
shipping not only within that NATO framework but outside it:
a. during tension UK powers of requisition would be exercised
and shipping allocated to meet priority national needs and
NATO'S Rapid Reinforcement Plan before the DSA had been
activated by the NATO Council;
b. non-ocean-going vessels and UK-chartered neutral tonnage
would also be controlled by the NSA (UK);
c.
ships covered by paragraph 5b of the annex would remain a
national responsibility.
12 The role of the Government in controlling merchant shipping in
tension and war would therefore include;
a.
b.
c.
requisitioning and chartering ships;
co-operating in the NATO pool fully, and notably by:
i.
advising the DSA of all ships the
UK could contribute to the pool;
ii.
stating national needs for ships
from the pool when UK-controlled
resources were insufficient;
iii. directing UK-controlled ships in
conformity with DSA allocations;
iv. using other NATO-controlled ships
allocated to it by the DSA;
allocating ships under its control to the best overall
national interest;
CONFIDENTIAL