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- 14.

"A new subsection is added to stipulate that the owner of the ship involved will be liable for compensation for the cost of preventive measures taken to deal with a threat of contamination and any further loss or damage caused by those preventive

measures.

"An addition of a new provision is also made to provide for a limitation on the enforcement of judgements by a court in a country that is not a party of the Liability Convention," he added.

The Bill further provides for the conversion of special drawing rights into Hong Kong dollars as well as the method for instituting proceedings in respect of the Fund.

Further provision of the Bill features an amendment which gives effect to the new aggregate limit of compensation with the amount of compensation actually paid under the Liability Convention i.e. 135 million special drawing rights (SDR).

Finally, the Bill also amends a clause so that the owner of a ship who incurs a liability for compensation may limit that liability in accordance with the new limits.

"With the new and improved provisions on compensation for pollution damage and the cost of preventive measures, Hong Kong would be better protected in the event of serious oil pollution incidents," the spokesman noted.

The Merchant Shipping (Liability and Compensation for Oil Pollution) (Amendment) Bill 1997 will be gazetted on April 18 and be tabled at the Legislative Council for first and second readings on April 30.

End

Licence of Commercial Radio to be amended

The Executive Council has decided to amend the sound broadcasting licence of Hong Kong Commercial Broadcasting Company Limited (Commercial Radio) to reflect changes proposed by the Broadcasting Authority following its mid-term review.

At the same time, an amendment to the licence of Metro Broadcast Corporation Limited (Metro Broadcast) was endorsed to remove the Broadcasting Authority's power to prohibit the broadcast of certain programmes, advertisements and materials. This is to reflect the repeal of section 13C(3)(a) of the Telecommunication Ordinance last year.