The International Institute of Marine Surveying’s (IIMS) submission to the Australian Senate, raising members concerns as to the direction and delivery of AMSA’s services for domestic commercial vessels, has been widely agreed with and extensively quoted in the Rural and Regional Affairs committee’s recently published report entitled Performance of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
IIMS expressed concerns over the new system’s excessive red tape, inappropriate and unsafe survey standards being applied and a lack of government concentration on safety management system development and implementation. These and other matters were highlighted by the IIMS and other submissions to the Senate Committee.
The committee made four recommendations with the first three relating to legislative changes to better allow authorities to prosecute breaches of the law.
The fourth recommendation sets out for the Australian Government to commission an independent review of the National Law and associated instruments to consider if it remains fit for purpose and if the instruments improve marine safety without being overly burdensome or complex. Based on multiple responses to our member questionnaire on the subject before the hearing, IIMS members certainly view this to be the situation with the current system.
IIMS welcomes the committee’s recommendations and findings. As the region and world’s premier professional body for marine surveying, (and the only surveyor’s association to make a submission to the committee), IIMS calls on the Australian Government to act on the report.
We will continue to remain closely engaged with the process and will consult with local members and input into future consultation to better improve this important regulatory reform.
Download the report in full: Performance of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority
About IIMS
The International Institute of Marine Surveying (IIMS) is an independent, non-political organisation promoting the professionalism, recognition and training of marine surveyors worldwide. The IIMS is the international professional body for marine surveyors and has a worldwide membership of around 1,000 individuals in over 100 countries. It is the largest organisation of its kind and seeks to represent its industry to government and non-governmental organisations such as the International Marine Organisation (IMO), Maritime Regulators, Coastguards, insurance companies and ship and vessel owners.
