§ 44. Mr. Loughlinasked the Minister of Transport what is the period of time normally required by his Department to institute a public inquiry into the loss of a British fishing vessel on the high seas after he has taken the decision that such an inquiry shall take place.
§ Vice-Admiral Hughes HallettSince the beginning of 1959 there have been 23 public formal investigations into casualties to British fishing vessels. The average time between the decision to order an investigation and the hearing has been just under four months. Seven of these were losses on the high seas, and the average time in these cases was just under five months.