The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has opened a consultation on strengthening safety for vessels, crew and passengers operating in polar waters by proposing the Merchant Shipping (Polar Code) (Safety) Regulations 2025.

The draft regulations are based on amendments to the International Maritime organisation’s SOLAS convention and would bring a wider range of vessels within the Polar Code’s operational and design requirements. The consultation paper sets out how the updated rules would apply in polar environments and seeks views on the scope and detail of the proposed measures.

Wider scope for vessels

Under the proposals, a number of vessel types that formerly sat outside the Polar Code would become subject to its standards, extending safety obligations in polar regions. This expansion is intended to ensure vessels operating in those waters meet higher design, construction and operational safety standards.

The consultation specifies the principal categories to be added:

  • fishing vessels measuring 24 metres and above;
  • pleasure yachts of at least 300 gross tonnage that are not engaged in trade;
  • cargo ships from 300 gross tonnage up to, but not including, 500 gross tonnage.

Bringing these craft within scope would require additional compliance measures, including changes to vessel design and operational planning so that a greater share of vessels in polar waters conforms to the strengthened regime.

Strengthened environmental protections

The package of measures also includes proposed safeguards aimed at reducing the risk of pollution incidents in sensitive polar habitats. The consultation states that the regulations would strengthen protection for polar flora and fauna by imposing controls designed to prevent pollution‑causing events and to minimise environmental harm.

These environmental provisions form part of the same regulatory instrument that addresses safety, reflecting the linked risks of operational failure and ecological damage in polar ecosystems. The proposals therefore seek to align vessel safety improvements with measures to cut the likelihood and severity of incidents that could damage vulnerable habitats.

The consultation, launched by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, ran from 12 June until 24 July 2025 and invited stakeholders to submit comments on the draft Merchant Shipping (Polar Code) (Safety) Regulations 2025. The MCA presented the proposals publicly as part of the UK’s implementation of the IMO SOLAS convention changes and to collect feedback from industry, owners and others operating in polar waters.

If taken forward in their present form, the measures would mean that more vessels visiting polar regions would need to meet the enhanced safety and environmental standards set out in the Polar Code. The intended outcome is to reduce risks to people on board and to the polar environment by raising the baseline for construction, equipment and operational practice across a broader range of craft.

Responses to the consultation will inform whether and how the proposed regulations are finalised and enacted. The MCA asked respondents to comment on the scope, practical implications and the proposed safeguards so that final regulations can reflect operational realities and environmental priorities in polar waters.

By widening the Polar Code’s reach the government aims to close regulatory gaps that left some vessel types without the higher standards now deemed necessary for polar operations. The consultation was presented as the vehicle to test those changes and to shape the regulatory approach before any new rules are made.