§ Mr. OnslowTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent representations he has received concerning the need to reform the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act 1984, in so far as these have come to be applied to the disposal of antiquities recovered from historic shipwrecks; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ChannonOne such representation has been made, by the Museums Association. Our aim is that the disposal of items recovered from wreck sites designated under the provisions of the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 as of historical, archaeological or artistic importance should be conducted in such a way as to ensure as far as possible that they remain accessible to the general public, that collections of items are kept together and that items of particular local interest go to local museums. In 1984 my Department published a consultative document containing proposals for changes to the wreck provisions of the 1894 Act. It remains the Government's intention to introduce legislation on the lines proposed, when Parliamentary time allows.