Select committee: International Relations and Defence Committee
Conclusion 46
2nd Report - UNCLOS: the law of the sea in the 21st century
Published 1 Mar 2022
Paragraph 256
International Relations and Defence Committee UNCLOS: fit for purpose in the 21st century? All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Criminals are already making use of maritime autonomous vehicles, and in the absence of updated and specific regulation on their use, it is difficult to determine culpability for such acts. The principle of equivalency is a good starting point but there will be circumstances which warrant new regulation. As well as developing international regulations, states will need to ensure the use of maritime autonomous vehicles for criminal purposes is included in domestic legislation. We ask that the Government provide us with information in its response to this report on whether maritime autonomous vehicles have been used for criminal activities in British waters to date, and whether domestic legislation has proved adequate to tackle such breaches.
From: International Relations and Defence Committee, 2nd Report - UNCLOS: the law of the sea in the 21st century, paragraph 256, 1 March 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 9 June 2022 (deadline 27 May 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government agrees with parts of the Committee's report, including that UNCLOS was "a fundamental step forward", but disagrees on using the annual meetings of states parties for substantive issues and takes a cautious approach on fixing baselines.
- On amending UNCLOS, the Government says that doing so "would be very difficult to achieve and is not considered the most effective option", and is instead working through routes within the UNCLOS framework, including a new implementing Agreement.
- It states that it "does not agree" that the annual meeting of states parties is an appropriate forum for substantive issues, citing no consensus among states parties.
- On sea level rise, the Government "intends to take a cautious approach" to fixing baselines, stating its general view that baselines are ambulatory and that it will keep this position under review.
- On the 1986 Convention on Conditions for Registration of Ships, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency is in the early stages of reviewing the UK's position and aims to finish this study this year.