Five cruise ships have been detained by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) over “serious concerns” for crew welfare.
Astoria, Astor, Columbus and Vasco de Gama, which are anchored at Tilbury Docks in Essex, have all been detained while Marco Polo at Avonmouth Docks in Bristol has also been held following an inspection amid reports of expired contracts and late pay.
A sixth ship, Magellan, was inspected but not detained.
Following its inspections, the MCA said: “Surveyors found a number of expired and invalid seafarers employment agreements, late payment of wages and crews who had been on board for over 12 months. All these are in breach of the Maritime Labour Convention and the ships have been detained for that reason.”…
Agencies +Telegram
