S.L. 234.38 Art. 4Inspection system and annual inspection commitment.

(1) The competent authority shall ensure that ships are selected for inspection on the basis of their risk profile as described in Annex I Part I to the Directive, and when overriding or unexpected factors arise in accordance with Annex I Part II 2A and

2B to the Directive.

(2) In selecting ships for inspection, the competent authority -

(a) shall inspect all ships which are due for a mandatory inspection, referred to as ''Priority I'' ships, in accordance with the selection scheme described in Annex I, Part II 3A to the Directive;

(b) may inspect ships which are eligible for inspection, referred to as ''Priority II'' ships in accordance with Annex I Part II 3B to the Directive:

Provided that the total annual number of inspections of Priority I and Priority II ships, correspond at least to the share of the total number of inspections to be carried out annually within the Paris Memorandum of Understanding region, calculated on the number of individual ships calling at Maltese ports in relation to the sum of the number of individual ships calling at ports of each State within the Paris Memorandum of Understanding region: Provided further that -

(a) when the total number of calls of Priority I ships exceeds the inspection share referred to above, the competent authority shall carry out a number of inspections on Priority I ships, corresponding to at least that inspection share and no more than 30% of the total number of Priority I ships calling at ports and anchorages are not missed, in order to comply with such commitment; and

(b) when the total number of Priority I and Priority II ships, is less than the inspection share referred to above, the competent authority shall carry out a number of inspections on Priority I ships, corresponding to at least that inspection share and inspections on at least 85% of the total number of Priority II ships calling at ports and anchorages.

(3) In the case of failure to carry out the inspections required under sub-regulation (2), the inspection commitment is still considered to be fulfilled in accordance with the provision unless such missed inspections exceed:

(a) 5% of the total number of Priority I ships with a high risk profile calling at ports and anchorages, or

(b) 10% of the total number of Priority I ships, other than those with a high risk profile calling at ports and anchorages: Provided that notwithstanding the percentage in paragraphs

(a) and (b), the competent authority shall prioritise the inspection of ships which, according to the information provided by the inspection database, call at ports within the Community infrequently, and for Priority I ships calling at anchorages, the competent authority shall prioritise inspection of ships with a high risk profile which, according to the information provided by the inspection database, call at ports within the Community infrequently.

(4) The competent authority may postpone the inspection of Priority I ships if the inspection may be carried out in another port of call within the Paris Memorandum of Understanding region within fifteen days: Provided that the State in which such port of call is located has agreed in advance to perform the inspection and this is recorded in the inspection database.

(5) Where an inspection is not performed on Priority I ships for operational reasons, it shall not be counted as a missed inspection: Provided that the reason for missing the inspection is recorded in the inspection database, and the following exceptional circumstances occur:

(a) in the judgment of the competent authority the conduct of the inspection would create a risk to the safety of inspectors, the ship, its crew or to the port or to the marine environment; or

(b) the ship call takes place only during night time; in such case necessary measures shall be taken to ensure that the ships which call regularly during night time are inspected as appropriate.

(6) If an inspection is not performed on a ship at anchorage, it shall not be counted as a missed inspection if:

(a) the ship is inspected in another port or anchorage within the Community or the Paris Memorandum of Understanding region in accordance with Annex I to the Directive within fifteen days; or

(b) the ship call takes place only during night time or its duration is too short for the inspection to be carried out satisfactorily, and the reason for missing the inspection is recorded in the inspection database; or

(c) in the judgment of the competent authority the conduct of the inspection would create a risk to the safety of inspectors, the ship, its crew or port, or to the marine environment, and the reason for missing the inspection is recorded in the inspection database.