S.L. 425.16 Art. 3Functions of the Director.

(1) Without prejudice to any other function, responsibility and power under the Act or any other law, as well as any other function provided in these regulations, the functions of the Director shall in particular include those listed under sub-regulations

(2) to (5).

(2) The Director shall:

(a) ensure that all communications required by Malta under European Union law or international law in relation to the BFT aquaculture sector are communicated;

(b) order the release of live BFT from an aquaculture establishment upon receiving a request from a foreign competent authority which is declared to be final and definitive, or is according to applicable European Union law or international law;

(c) engage national observers to act as required according to European Union law and, or international law, as well as according to any other requirements as the Director may deem fit to impose in relation to such engagements, and ensure that operators do all that may be reasonable to ensure that national observers are allowed to fulfil their role;

(d) ensure that operators do all that may be reasonable to ensure that regional observers fulfil their role according to European Union law, and or international law, and for so doing he may issue such orders towards operators as the Director may deem fit;

(e) prescribe such declarations, forms and additional procedures as he may deem necessary or expedient to comply with obligations according to these regulations, and particularly so when these are required by international law and, or RFMOs;

(f) order and execute the transfer of any live BFT from any aquaculture establishment and, or cage to another cage for control and monitoring purposes and according to such conditions that he may so order;

(g) take action, as necessary or expedient, towards the fulfilment of all the provisions of these regulations and for so doing he may, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing and any other power or responsibility according to law:

(i) require the provision of any information, document, object or copy thereof from any person and, or operator as he may deem relevant or expedient to fulfil the provisions of these regulations;

(ii) order the temporary cessation of any activity regulated by these regulations or having an effect thereon;

(iii) suspend or revoke any authorisation issued according to these regulations;

(iv) seize, store and, or destroy any fish, implement, gear or other object as he may order and in doing so he may charge the expenses against the operator concerned;

(v) exercise all powers as are vested in him according to the Act for the purposes of mutatis mutandis these regulations.

(3) Without prejudice to any other function, responsibility and power under the Act or any other law, the Director is hereby empowered to act towards the fulfilment of any obligation, commitment or objective binding on Malta and, or on operators under Maltese jurisdiction, as applicable according to European Union law and, or international law, in relation to the bluefin tuna aquaculture sector:

Provided that, without prejudice to the generality of this sub-regulation, the Director shall be competent for the aforesaid fulfilment and any specific power to be exercised by Malta or which could be exercised at Malta's discretion shall be deemed to vest in the Director without the need of any further ratification or enactment.

(4) Without prejudice to sub-regulation (3), the Director may publish a list of particular applicable instruments under European Union law and, or international law by means of a Government notification, exclusively so as to draw the particular attention of operators on certain applicable obligations according to the same instruments: Provided that, without prejudice to sub-regulation (3) and any other law, publication as referred in this sub-regulation shall lead to a presumption that the legal instruments listed juris et de jure are enforceable in Malta by the Director.

(5) The Director may also:

(a) communicate information related to the BFT aquaculture sector to European Union or international bodies when the Director deems it fit in the interest of the same sector, or in the interest of the sustainability, control, enforcement or management thereof:

(b) impose specific requirements on the roles of national observers which are to be observed by the same observers and, or operators accordingly:

(c) delegate the exercise of any of his responsibilities and, or powers according to these regulations to such persons as he may designate and according to such conditions as he may deem fit:

(d) without prejudice to any other law and when not specifically provided for under these regulations, order the release of any number of live BFT as may be held by any operator, when such release is necessary or adequate to fulfil any obligation under these regulations and particularly so with respect to obligations referred to under sub-regulation (3).

(6) Anything done by the Director or his delegates according to this regulation, save if it was expressly indicated otherwise, shall be binding at law upon all operators concerned.