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}
553
**
fi ed está OT
***
TO
10
possession of a candidate who fails to pass any of the sight
tests, and that sub-sections (VI) and (VII) of paragraph 11 of
the regulations are ultra vires, as they are not rules either
for (a) the conduct of the examinations or for (b) the quali-
fication of the applicants, and are therefore not covered by
section 94 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894,under which the
Regulations for the examination of Masters and Mates in the
United Kingdom are made.
In view of the great danger to life and pro-
perty at sea, if holders of certificates who have been found
to be of defective vision were allowed to occupy responsible
positions on board ship, the Board of Trade consider that, while
discontinuing the practice of endorsing as hitherto certifi-
cates once granted, they should take such steps as will secure
the public safety, and they have accordingly determined to deal
with such cases in virtue of the powers granted to them by
section 471 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894.
The Board desire me to transmit to you a copy
cancelling para-
of a Circular Notice which they have issued, ca
graph 11 of the Regulations, substituting therefore an amended
paragraph, and stating that whenever the holder of a Certifi-
cate of Competency fails to pass any of the sight tests, they
will cause an Inquiry to be held by a Court having jurisdic-
tion to cancel or suspend such certificates, unless the holder
prefers to surrender the certificate voluntarily until he
succeeds in passing the test in which he failed,
I am to suggest, in view of the importance of
the