From the time the first Merchant Shipping Law was enacted in the Cayman Islands more than a century ago all merchant craft and large yachts had to be registered out of George Town port.
Sister Islands MLA Moses Kirkconnel. |
A vote of the Legislative Assembly has changed that.
Large vessels who register in the Cayman Islands can now carry two new destinations on their hulls: The Creek in Cayman Brac, and Bloody Bay in Little Cayman.
‘Just the idea of having The Creek, Cayman Islands or Bloody Bay, Cayman Islands on some of the largest yachts or merchant ships in the world is great,’ said Sister Islands MLA Moses Kirkconnel.
The change in the law is largely symbolic since it doesn’t require vessels to ever dock at those locations, and the processing of merchant ship registration paperwork will still be handled in George Town.
Maritime Authority officials said the main reason for the change is to provide more customer choices in registering vessels.
‘It was never recognised that a ship owner could be registered in the other (Cayman) ports,’ Mr. Kirkconnel said. ‘It’s a marketing opportunity to be recognised on an international basis.’
Several other minor changes to the Merchant Shipping Law were made in the approved 2007 revision
The law now extends the range of countries in which people may be qualified to own ships which are registered in the Cayman Islands.
The law also now allows for temporary certificates of merchant ship registration, which can either be issued for a specific period or as an interim registration for Cayman Islands ships.
In addition, the law increases the level of compensation paid to the Cayman Islands for oil pollution damage caused by merchant vessels.
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