TNAG-0421-FCO40-467-Registration-of-merchant-shipping-in-Hong-Kong-1973 — Page 53

1

Reference

'SI

Mr Stuart P. Godf

PA

Thanks

Abe

4/711 03/12

HONG KONG REGISTER OF SHIPPING/

1

•

After you left Mr Archer's meeting this morning, the thought was expressed that what might well be behind the motivation for a Hong Kong register was the "package concept". This apparently means that the Japanese could offer a very attractive price for ships. built in Japan by foreign ship owners provided that all the equipment on it was Japanese. A further consider- ation would be that the ship could then be registered by the NKK which has allegedly lower standards than other classification societies. The meeting in general thought that this could very probably encourage British ship owners to place their orders in Japan and not with British yards.

2.

Subsequently we went over the difficulties regarding certification and the principle reciprocity in connection with safety equipment.

3. After a considerable amount of time Mr Archer sumed up by outlining the draft which he proposed should go to his Minister. This outlined the following:

The DTI had suspected the situation over foreign certificates was unsatisfactory but now they find it is very much worse than they had feared.

It should be possible to allow aliens to take first and second mate engineers certificates. Officials came to the conclusion that an interview system is non-workable and they would therefore propose that aliens take the certificates above,

examination.

The MOD however have reverted to insisting that on the UK register both chief and first officers must be British.

We could accept Japanese equipment on the Hong Kong and British registers only if it were reciprocal.

The submission would warn that the practical difficulties were such that it would be unlikely they could recommend the establish- ment of a separate register but that the relaxation of aliens taking British

meeting

certificates would go some way (o% working wear Y K Pao's points.

Mr Archer undertook to see that we saw the submission

in draft.

14.

DD 145177 219242 500M 4/73 GM 3643/2