§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the efficiency of the safety tests carried out by classification societies related to lifejackets; and on what date the approval was rescinded. [114529]
§ Mr. HillThe Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) regularly monitors the performance of the Classification Societies which carry out test and approval for lifejackets and other equipment. The MSA certificate of type approval for the lifejackets carried by the Sleipner, issued by Bureau Veritas, was withdrawn on 24 January 2000.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what was the result of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency investigation into the safety of lifejackets following the loss of the Sleipner ferry. [114528]
§ Mr. HillFollowing the loss of the Sleipner, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) worked in close liaison with the Norwegian and Italian authorities to test the lifejackets used on board the vessel at the time of the accident.
MCA contracted the Robert Gordon Institute of Technology in Aberdeen to carry out comprehensive tests of the performance of the lifejacket. These tests were witnessed by the manufacturers, the Classification Societies Bureau Veritas and RINa, as well as the MCA. The tests demonstrated that the lifejacket was unable to meet the International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirements.
As a result of the tests, Bureau Veritas withdrew the approval of the lifejacket. MCA issued a Press Release drawing attention to UK ship owners that this lifejacket should be replaced on all UK ships.