S.L. 234.49 Art. 10Conduct of investigations and independence.

(1) Marine safety investigations shall:

(a) be independent of judicial or other parallel investigations whose purpose, or one of whose purposes is to determine liability or apportion blame or may lead to the determination of liability or apportionment of blame; and

(b) not be unduly precluded, suspended, or delayed by reason of any measure, including an investigation mentioned in paragraph (a), irrespective of the severity or perceived severity of the marine accident or incident.

(2) Without prejudice to sub-regulation (4), if the head of marine safety investigation decides pursuant to regulation 7(1) that an investigation shall be carried out, it shall be undertaken by one or more safety investigators, following the principles of the common methodology and at such times and places as appear to them most conducive to achieving the objective set out in regulation 4 of these regulations.

(3) Notwithstanding sub-regulation (2), the head of marine safety investigation may depart from the principles of the common methodology in a specific case where this can be justified as necessary, in his professional judgment, in order to achieve the objective of these regulations.

(4) When the required professional expertise in a marine safety investigation cannot be provided by the Marine Safety Investigation Unit, the safety investigator may be assisted by any person, so appointed by the head of marine safety investigation, and such person shall have the powers conferred on a safety investigator under regulation 5. The head of marine safety investigation may also, by writing, revoke or suspend the appointment under this paragraph before the marine safety investigation is concluded to his satisfaction.

(5) In relation to a marine safety investigation being conducted, the head of marine safety investigation may request assistance from any public body, any person other than a person mentioned in sub-regulation (4), or from another marine safety investigation authority.

(6) A marine safety investigation may extend to cover all events and circumstances preceding the marine accident or incident together with subsequent events and circumstances which in the opinion of the head of marine safety investigation may have been relevant to its cause or outcome.

(7) Any person, not being a person acting specifically and solely on behalf of a person required to attend for an interview, who has been allowed by a safety investigator to be present or has been nominated to be present by a person required to attend, may at any time be excluded from being present by the safety investigator with the agreement of the head of marine safety investigation, if:

(a) both the safety investigator and the head of marine safety investigation have substantial reason to believe that his presence would hamper the marine safety investigation with the result that the objective in regulation 4 is likely to be hindered and maritime safety thereby endangered; and

(b) the head of marine safety investigation is satisfied having regards to all circumstances, that it is proper to exclude that person.

(8) Without prejudice to the foregoing paragraph, where a person nominated to be present has been excluded in accordance with sub-regulation (7), the person required to be interviewed shall be entitled to nominate another person to be present at the interview.

(9) Evidential material required by a safety investigator to be produced for the purposes of an investigation, whether on board the ship involved or otherwise, may be retained by the Marine Safety Investigation Unit until the marine safety investigation is completed.