§ Mr. CarmichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2004,Official Report, column 1235W, if he will introduce primary legislation to revise the eligibility criteria for the scheme; and what discussions his Department has had with representatives of seafarer trade unions concerning alterations to the Crew Relief Costs Scheme. [155511]
§ Mr. JamiesonPrimary legislation will be introduced when Parliamentary time is available. The proposed extension of the Crew Relief Costs Scheme was discussed with members of the Shipping Working Group, including seafarer trade unions, when the policy outlined in the White Paper "British Shipping: Charting a New Course" was being developed.
§ Mr. CarmichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2004,Official Report, column 1242W, if he will make a statement on the progress made towards implementing the actions contained in "British Shipping: Charting a New Course"; whether it is his policy to implement all the actions in the paper; and when his Department will conclude the implementation of these actions. [155513]
§ Mr. JamiesonThe Government's shipping policy is stated in the White Paper "British Shipping: Charting a New Course". Some of the actions are on-going and so will not have a date by which they will be completed. It is therefore not possible to issue a timetable showing when the implementation will be concluded. An update of the current status of the 33 actions from "Charting" has been placed in the Libraries of the House.