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"Certain rules presently provided for by United Kingdom enactments relating to seafarers which apply to Hong Kong will cease to have effect after June 30, 1997," a spokesman of the Marine Department said.
To localise United Kingdom legislation relating to seafarers, the Legislative Council passed the Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) Ordinance on June 14 last year.
To provide a comprehensive body of laws relating to seafarers, 28 sets of regulations/rules relating to health, safety and welfare of seafarers, and mercantile marine industry, have been prepared under the ordinance and were gazetted in last December and January this year.
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"With the exception of the Merchant Shipping (Seafarers)(Fees) Regulation and Merchant Shipping (Fees)(Amendments) Regulation 1996, the other regulations/rules have been endorsed by the Legislative Council," the spokesman said.
"In the absence of a proper fees and charges system for implementing the various licensing systems and services provide under the ordinance, it was not possible to bring the ordinance and its subsidiary legislation into operation as originally planned on March 1, 1996," he said.
The revised Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Fees) Regulation incorporated 132 fee items which are at present stipulated under other merchant shipping legislation and introduces 10 new fee items.
"Of these 132 items, 51 will simply be transferred from other existing legislation with no increase in fees; for another 74 items an increase of 10 per cent is proposed while the remaining seven fee items which have not been revised since 1966 or 1975 an increase exceeding 10 per cent is proposed," the spokesman said.
There
are altogether 21 fee items under the Merchant Shipping (Fees)(Amendment)(No 2) Regulation 1996.
"It is proposed that all the fee items in this Regulation be revised by 10 per cent to bring them more in line with current price levels," the spokesman said.
"The proposed fees under the Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Fees) Regulation and the Merchant Shipping (Fees)(Amendment)(No 2) 1996 recover about 22 per cent and 41 per cent of the total costs incurred in providing the services respectively.