12 Table II/1 of the STCW Code requires that deck officers should have "the ability to use and understand the Standard Marine Navigation Vocabulary as replaced by the Standard Marine Communication Phrased ". It should be therefore be made clear in the foreword to the SMCP that the references in STCW 95 only refer to those sections which revise the SMNV (i.e. the sections relevant to external communication).
13 The draft SMCP should be made considerably shorter.
14 The introduction to the SMCP should make it clear that the phrases that may be useful for internal communication on board ship have been drafted as additional material to which English language teachers may refer, but which seafarers are not actually expected to learn on a phrase by phrase basis.
15 That the entire SMCP be subjected to a detailed review on a line by line basis, during a meeting of a working group to be established a NAV 46, so that all inappropriate use of English can be corrected.
Action requested of the Sub-Committee
16 The Sub-Committee is requested to recommend to NAV 46 that in view of the importance of the SMCP, and the fact that reference is made to it in STCW 95, a working group should be established at NAV 46 which will include English language training experts, in order that the draft SMCP is given the detailed consideration which it requires.
