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CHAPTER 5
5.
The Registry
(a)
5.1.
Supervision
In the the CD we touched briefly on the
operation of the existing register (saying the mechanics were somewhat cumbersome) and suggested that the new Merchant Shipping Act (MSA) presently being drafted in the United Kingdom "should provide guidance for the more efficient operation of the Register". In this context
it is important to distinguish between the operation of the register and the function of a Regulatory Shipping Authority. The former is a legal and clerical process e.g. the examination of bills of sale, declarations of ownership etc., the recording of mortgages and other particulars in the register and the issue of statutory documents (Certificates of Nationality). The processes
involved are closely regulated by law and detailed instructions issued by the relevant Government Authority
-
in the present case the U.K. Commissioner of
Customs and Excise.
5.2.
A Regulatory Shipping Authority is responsible for the development of legislation to implement international conventions and the development of policy