Thursday 21st July 2011
Shipping & Heritage Reporter
THE threat from pirates to British shipping is so great that UK-flagged vessels – including many that visit Southampton – will soon be able to employ armed guards as they navigate dangerous waters.
Shipping minister Mike Penning has indicated the Government is about to introduce new legislation which will change the present law and give the legal go-ahead for ships flying the red ensign to recruit armed guards…“Legislation will have to be changed to protect our seafarers around the world,’’ said the minister. “At present it is illegal to use armed guards on British ships, but we are where we are and I cannot ignore the situation.’’ The government believes the new regulations will regulate and control the recruitment of armed guards, and will stop any “cowboys’’ being allowed on board British ships.
Despite a naval task force patrolling near the Horn of Africa, Somali pirates have taken 361 sailors captive in the first six months of this year…Read more.
Related articles
- UK merchant ships ‘may be armed’ (bbc.co.uk)
- Pirates seize tanker off Somali coast (cnn.com)
- Secrets of Somali pirates revealed in new book (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- The Pirates of Somalia: Inside Their Hidden World, by Jay Bahadur (theglobeandmail.com)
Africa's Public Procurement & Entrepreneurship Research Initiative - APPERI 
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