During the recent Seminar on Quality Shipping held in Singapore on 24/25 March, the Chairman of the International Commission on Shipping (ICONS) Hon. Peter Morris met with Canadian Transport Minister, Mr. David Collenette to discuss the work of the Commission.

The independent Commission, established last June at the instigation of the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF), comprises four Commissioners, Chairman the Hon Peter Morris (Australia), Mr. James Bell (United Kingdom) Professor Moritaka Hayashi (Japan) and Captain Barry McKay (Canada).

The prime objective of ICONS is to address the on-going problem of sub-standard shipping that plagues international shipping. Over the next nine months, the Commission will be conducting, with representatives from All elements of the Shipping Industry, a series of public consultative meetings throughout the world. At the conclusion of such consultations, the Commission will publish a report based on its findings.

Meetings in the Americas are scheduled for the first half of September, including visits to Vancouver and Montreal.

Minister Collenette saw the establishment of the Commission as a natural progression following on the heels of the Ministerial Conference on Port State Control that he had hosted in Vancouver in March 1998. He wished the Commission every success in its important work, promising to provide support for the Commission's hearings in Canada.

Mr. Morris stated that with major initiatives addressing the problem of sub-standard shipping now underway on several fronts throughout the world, he saw the Commission playing an important role in analyzing the overall situation and making appropriate recommendations for a wide ranging strategy aimed at eventually eliminating the problem.

Mr.Morris also underlined the importance of as many sectors of the industry as possible providing information and opinions to the Commission.

It is the intention of the Commission to directly contact as many persons as possible within Canada with an invitation to participate in the Commission's deliberations in September, and all interested parties were earnestly invited to make their views known at the earliest opportunity. However, given the logistics of reaching everyone in this manner, all interested parties are invited to make their views known by mail e-mail or fax.

The deadline for Canadian submissions is 7th July, 2000.

Ottawa 31 March, 2000