Following the grounding of the Sea Empress at Milford Haven in 1996 the DETR initiated a Review of the Pilotage Act 1987 which led to the issue of the Port Marine Safety Code (PMSC) by the DETR in March 2000.
The PMSC requires all harbour authorities to develop a safety policy for marine operations within their jurisdiction. This requirement itself makes a contribution to safety by obliging those responsible to consider its importance, and the need for practical and formal safety systems. The policy should be published, both to demonstrate the authority's commitment to the policy and also to ensure the involvement of harbour users. The management of any harbour under statutory powers should be based on a clear safety policy adopted by the harbour authority.
GHT has formally resolved to meet this commitment and to that end has produced a Safety Management System which includes a regularly reviewed and updated Safety Management Plan and Risk Assessment. An audit was conducted by a third-party auditor in April 2022 and the recommendations of the auditor have been included in the most recent version of the Safety Management Plan. The Plan document comprises a main part together with supporting appendices and annexes. For ease of reference, they are provided as separate items through the following links.