Consultation outcome

Removal of pilotage functions at Scarborough and Whitby harbour

Updated 7 April 2021

This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

Summary

The Secretary of State for Transport has received an application from Scarborough Borough Council (the council) to be removed from the list of Competent Harbour Authorities (CHAs) maintained by the Department for Transport (DfT).

Removal would withdraw the council’s functions in relation to the provision of maritime pilotage services for the harbours of Whitby and Scarborough, as well as Filey Coble Landing, which are the only facilities that the council manages in its capacity as a CHA.

Removal requires the Secretary of State to make a Pilotage Function Removal Order (PFRO) under section 1 of the Pilotage Act 1987 (as amended by the Marine Navigation Act 2013).

This consultation seeks your views on the council’s proposal.

Duration of consultation

The consultation will last 4 weeks, beginning on 12 February 2021 and closing on 12 March 2021.

In deciding on the length of time the consultation will run we have considered the guidance on consultation principles (at annex A). We have concluded that the main stakeholders, mainly maritime operators at the harbours of Whitby and Scarborough, are already aware of the relevant issues, following a local consultation completed by the council in advance of its application to the Secretary of State, and that 4 weeks is a sufficient period for stakeholders to consider the proposal.

How to respond

Ensure that your response reaches us before 12 March 2021.

Your response will be most useful if it is framed in reply to the questions posed although further comments and evidence are also welcome.

A list of those consulted can be found at annex B.

If you have any question about this consultation, e-mail us at maritimesafety@dft.gov.uk or contact us at:

Maritime Safety Team
Department for Transport
Zone 2/34
Great Minster House
33 Horseferry Road
London, SW1P 4DR

Confidentiality and data protection

The Department for Transport (DfT) is carrying out this consultation to gather evidence in relation to whether pilotage services are necessary in the harbours of Scarborough and Whitby and whether removal of the CHA status of the council will have an impact (positive or negative) on the users of its facilities or the local environment. This consultation and the processing of personal data that it entails is necessary for the exercise of DfT’s functions as a government department. If your answers contain any information that allows you to be identified, DfT will, under data protection law, be the controller for this information.

As part of this consultation, we’re asking for your name and email address. This is in case we need to ask you follow-up questions about any of your responses. You do not have to give us this personal information. If you do provide it, we will use it only for the purpose of asking follow-up questions. If you wish to remain anonymous please refrain from disclosing personal information that would make you identifiable.

Information provided in response to this consultation may be subject to publication or disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information Regulations 2004.

If you want all, or part, of your response to be treated as confidential, explain why you consider it to be confidential.

If a request for disclosure of the information you have provided is received, your explanation about why you consider it confidential will be taken into account but no assurance can be given that confidentiality can be maintained. An automatic confidentiality disclaimer generated by your IT system will not, of itself, be regarded as binding on DfT.

DfT will process your personal data (name and address) and any other identifying material, in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and your personal information will only be used for the purposes of this consultation. Your information will not be shared with third parties unless the law allows it. Your information will be kept securely on DfT servers and destroyed within 12 months after the consultation has been completed.

You can read more about what DfT does when we ask for, and hold, your personal information in our personal information charter.

What happens next?

We will consider responses to this consultation and aim to publish a summary, noting the Secretary of State’s final conclusions, within 12 weeks of the closing date.

If any formal objections to the proposal are raised then DfT will contact the person who raised the objection to discuss their concerns. If the objection is not withdrawn and the Secretary of State decides to proceed with the order then the order will be subject to special parliamentary procedure, as described in section 1(8) of the act.

Introduction

This section explains the background to marine pilotage, the powers and obligations of CHAs and the process for removing these in relation to specified ports, harbours or other facilities.

What is marine pilotage?

Pilotage is the use of marine pilots to conduct the navigation of ships through dangerous or congested waters using their local knowledge and skills to ensure safe passage.

Under the Pilotage Act 1987 (the 1987 act), full responsibility for the management of pilotage was given to CHAs in recognition of the fact that they are best placed to respond to local requirements and have the necessary knowledge and expertise to undertake this responsibility effectively.

Depending on the size, geography, tides and many other variables affecting a port or harbour, the responsible CHA may require certain ships to employ one or more pilots.

What is a Competent Harbour Authority?

A CHA, as defined in the 1987 act, is a harbour authority which has:

1. statutory powers in relation to the regulation of shipping movements and the safety of navigation within its harbour
2. which also falls wholly or partly within an active former pilotage district

CHAs are responsible for all pilotage matters at their facilities including the authorisation of pilots, the arrangements under which pilots are to provide their services and if they are employed, the terms of their employment. They are also responsible for the assessment and granting of Pilotage Exemption Certificates^{[footnote 1]}.

The 1987 act gives the Secretary of State powers to create new CHAs, to extend their area of competency or to withdraw CHA status.

Why and how would a CHA be relieved of its status?

A CHA is obliged to keep pilotage services for its geographic area under review and to consider what pilotage services are needed and whether any should be mandatory. A CHA must arrange for such pilotage as they consider necessary and may be held responsible for failure to maintain an adequate service.

The discharge of such functions by a CHA, even if it concludes that no pilotage is needed in its area, involves a level of responsibility on the part of the CHA with related costs in terms of money and time. Consequently, a CHA for an area where no pilotage is needed may wish to be relieved of these functions.

The removal of pilotage functions from CHAs relieves them of their powers and duties relating to pilotage under the 1987 Act. A harbour authority from which such functions were removed would cease to be a CHA but would continue to be a Statutory Harbour Authority (SHA). SHAs have a responsibility, placed on the Harbour Master, to ensure navigation and safety within harbour limits and have powers to issue general or specific directions to control the movement of vessels.

At the request of the industry, provisions enabling removal of CHA status were included in section 1 of the Marine Navigation Act 2013 (the 2013 act). This amended the 1987 Act to provide the appropriate national authority with powers to specify, by order, that a harbour authority in England, Wales or Scotland is not a CHA. In relation to the council, the appropriate authority is the Secretary of State.

More information about PFROs and guidance on the application process is available.

The proposal

Request for a Pilotage Function Removal Order

In December 2018, the Secretary of State received an application from the Chief Executive of the council requesting the removal of its status as a CHA for the harbours of Scarborough and Whitby and Filey Coble Landing^{[footnote 2]} as the only facilities which the council manages. Given that pilotage services have never been offered at Filey Coble Landing, this consultation will concentrate on the harbours or Whitby and Scarborough.

The application notes that, following careful consideration and a recent comprehensive review, the council has concluded that pilotage – which is currently mandatory for vessels greater than 37 metres in length – is no longer required to ensure the safe navigation of the types of the craft that now use its facilities and that there is no prospect of that situation changing.

The council has therefore requested a PFRO to withdraw its status as a CHA under the 1987 act.

The harbours

The harbours of Scarborough and Whitby come under the ownership and management of the council which is also the Statutory Harbour Authority.

Whitby harbour

Whitby harbour, which lies on the north-east coast of England at the confluence of the River Esk and the North Sea, is in the centre of the town and is host to commercial fishing, leisure and commercial users together with supporting and ancillary industries.

Although once renowned for its cargo trade this ceased entirely in 2000 and the local fishing fleet is significantly smaller than it was at its historic high and now comprises mainly smaller (less than 10 metres) boats. The port is currently home to over 300 leisure craft and approximately 650 other (mainly leisure) craft visit per annum.

Scarborough harbour

Scarborough harbour lies on the eastern periphery of the town and, although one of the east coast’s principle shipbuilding centres in the nineteenth century, like Whitby it is now home to a similar mix of fishing and leisure vessels.

Cargo trade ceased at the port in 1986 and the commercial fishing fleet has reduced to 35 vessels with the majority of these being smaller boats below 10 metres (although it remains a popular destination with visiting prawn trawlers and scallop vessels). The number of leisure craft using the port has increased in recent years, with over 265 berths currently occupied and a healthy waiting list for future users. The port is also host to a number of commercially-operated pleasure and charter boats which mainly run during the summer tourist season

The application

The council notes that the current pilotage service was devised at a time many years ago when both Whitby and Scarborough had an active cargo vessel trade. However, since that time coastal trade in the area has changed significantly to the point where neither harbour now experiences regular cargo trade (this has been the case for 20 years in the case of Whitby and over forty for Scarborough). The types of vessel vising both harbours are now predominantly smaller fishing and leisure craft which are below the 37-metre length threshold set for mandatory pilotage.

The council has continually employed a pilot since it became a CHA in 1987 but this change in circumstances has resulted in only 3 acts of pilotage carried out over the past 6 years. All 3 have been unusual ‘towage’ acts not considered to be part of the regular commercial activity of the harbours and the council is confident, were its CHA status to be withdrawn and if necessary in future, that it has appropriate provisions in place to ensure that such services could be carried out without the need for pilotage or the employment of a qualified pilot.

In accordance with its statutory obligations to keep pilotage services under review, the council has undertaken a comprehensive review of its port navigation risk assessment and completed a pilotage service review which included:

• a review of current documentation and relevant national and local legislation
• an overview of the current pilotage operation
• a risk assessment to determine the continued need for a pilotage service
• an analysis of the methods and options for delivering a pilotage service, if considered required

The pilotage service review concluded that both harbours are “low risk” and that there were already adequate controls in place to mitigate the safe arrival and departure of the vessels which now use the harbours without the need to embark a pilot. It was highlighted that the pilot transfer operation was also the most potentially hazardous activity performed within the pilotage service.

The Pilotage Service Review also concluded that there was insufficient demand to enable the current pilot to maintain his skills nor to train new pilots to the required standard. The council notes that this is likely to fall short of the guidance in the Port Marine Safety Code (PMSC) Guide to Good Practice which requires pilots to undertake “sufficient pilotage work to maintain their skills adequately”. This is an issue which was highlighted by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in its 2017 PMSC compliance health check, which noted that there was “…no opportunity to conduct practical assessments of pilots under current circumstances.”

The council also consulted local stakeholders via its Harbour User Consultative Group and held a public consultation on its web site. The consultation was open between 8 March and 31 May 2018. During this time a small number of users, members of the public and councillors approached the council with questions about the proposals and the potential impact on operations which might result should the pilotage service be removed. No objections were received.

The council’s application also notes that, although not fully quantifiable, it does incur costs to operate and maintain the current pilotage service whilst receiving no income from service users. Those costs include the:

• provision of a pilot boat including maintenance and certification costs
• maintenance of pilot boat crew certification and associated training costs
• provision and costs of simulation training for the licenced, and any trainee, pilots
• costs of keeping the pilotage service under review

Consideration

DfT has considered the council’s application and explored the practical implications of the removal of its CHA status with the Harbour Master.

DfT has noted that:

• the level of traffic at the harbours has substantially reduced
• the navigation safety risk based on most recent usage is low
• there is insufficient opportunity for the current pilot to maintain his skills
• there is insufficient opportunity for the current pilot to train future pilots
• the Maritime and Coastguard Agency has highlighted a lack of opportunity to conduct practical assessments of the pilot to maintain his certificate
• provision is already in place to meet the navigation safety requirements of the vessels which now use the harbours including a regularly updated safety of navigation risk assessment
• harbour users did not raise any objections to the application for withdrawal of CHA status
• costs are being incurred to maintain a service which is no longer in practical use

DfT also notes that, if its CHA status is removed, the council will remain as a Statutory Harbour Authority with a responsibility to ensure navigation and safety within harbour limits. In this capacity, the council will retain its powers to issue general or specific directions to control the movement of vessels within the waters it manages and it already provides a 24-hour local port service (port control) overseeing movements and offering advice to vessels with port control watchkeepers empowered to issue special directions for navigation safety purposes.

The council will also continue to provide safety of navigation guidance to vessel masters who haven’t visited the harbours recently and to regularly publish Local Notices to Mariners, provide local Aids to Navigation and tide and wave data for harbour users.

DfT has concluded that the removal of pilotage provision at the facilities which the council manages would not have any adverse impact on navigation safety and would not be to the detriment of any harbour users or the environment should the council’s CHA status be withdrawn. Although not directly quantifiable it is clear that costs are being incurred by the council in maintaining the current pilotage service and that these are not recoverable from service users. There is, therefore, likely to be a small, non-quantifiable, monetary benefit to the council from the withdrawal of its CHA status.

Given this evidence, the Secretary of State is minded to remove the council’s CHA status by making the order (draft at annex C) under section 1(4A) of the 1987 act and is undertaking this consultation in accordance with section 1(8AA) of the 1987 act.

We would welcome your views on the questions posed to assist in providing evidence to the Secretary of State in making the final decision on whether or not to make the order.

Draft order

A draft of the proposed Scarborough Borough Council harbour authority (Removal of Pilotage Functions) Order can be found at annex C.

Impact assessment

There is no necessity for an impact assessment to be produced for this legislation as there are no quantifiable costs or benefits associated with the proposal to remove the council’s CHA status.

Next steps

We will publish a summary of the responses to the consultation and our final conclusions within 12 weeks of the consultation closing date.

Consultation questions

We would welcome your comments on any aspect of this consultation but, in particular, views on the following questions would be appreciated (please give reasons for your answers where appropriate):

About you

What is your name?

What is your e-mail address?

If you are responding on behalf of an organisation, please tell us what this is and how the views in your response were determined (for example through consultation)?

Main consultation questions

Question 1

Do you agree that it is no longer necessary for:

1. pilotage services to be provided at the harbours of Scarborough and Whitby?
2. a designated body to be charged with keeping pilotage provision under review at the harbours of Scarborough, Whitby and Filey Coble Landing?

Question 2

Do you have a view on whether the proposal to remove the Scarborough Borough Council’s CHA status will have any impact (positive or negative) on the users of its facilities or the local environment either directly or indirectly?

Question 3

Are you aware of any quantifiable costs or benefits that could be attributed to the removal of Scarborough Borough Council’s CHA status?

Objections

If you would like to raise a formal objection to the proposal then please provide full details in writing to maritimesafety@dft.gov.uk by 12 March 2021. Ensure that you provide sufficient information to allow the Secretary of State to assess and consider the reasoning behind your objection. Provide your full name and e-mail address in the correspondence.

Annex A: consultation principles

This consultation is being conducted in line with the government’s consultation principles.

If you have comments about the consultation process, contact:

Consultation Co-ordinator
Department for Transport
Zone1/14
Great Minster House
London, SW1P 4DR

or e-mail consultation@dft.gov.uk.

Annex B: list of those consulted

• British Ports Association

• Crown Estate

• Environment Agency

• Local authorities and partners of the CHA

• Marine Management Organisation

• Maritime and Coastguard Agency

• Royal Yachting Association

• Trinity House

• UK Harbour Masters Association

• UK Maritime Pilots Association

Annex C: draft order

The draft Scarborough Borough Council (removal of pilotage functions) order 2020 (PDF, 305KB) is attached separately.

Footnotes

1. If pilotage is compulsory the CHA must, on application by certain crew on a vessel, grant them a certificate enabling them to pilot that vessel (and any other ships specified in the certificate) in the area without a pilot provided that they are satisfied, by examination or reference to such other requirements as it may reasonably impose, that their skill, experience and local knowledge are sufficient for that purpose and, if it appears necessary in the interests of safety, that they have sufficient knowledge of English. These certificates are known as Pilotage Exemption Certificates or PECs. ↩

2. Filey Coble Landing is a cobbled and concrete structure at the north end of Filey beach. Until recently the landing was used predominantly for fishing and seven traditional fishing cobles still use the facilities but tourism has now taken over and its main use is now for passenger vehicles, pleasure craft (around 24 vessels) and local RNLI lifeboat operation. The landing is the main place to launch day boats from the slipway. ↩