75.— (1) Where—

(a) an investigator considers it necessary for the purposes of an investigation into a marine casualty in accordance with Part 3 of the Act of 2000,

(b) a tribunal considers it necessary for the purposes of an inquiry under section 38 of the Act of 2000, or

(c) the Minister considers it necessary for the purposes set out in subsection (2),

the investigator, the tribunal or the Minister, as the case may be (“the relevant party”) may cause any sunken vessel which has been involved in the marine casualty to be raised and brought ashore for the purposes of examining it, and may make any necessary arrangements for the inspection, storage and, if necessary, disposal in due course of the vessel.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), the Minister may cause a vessel to be raised under subsection (1) where he or she considers it necessary for—

(a) ensuring the safety of vessels or their crews,

(b) formulating, promoting or improving specified standards of seaworthiness, construction or maintenance of vessels, or determining specified life-saving, fire-fighting, radio installations, navigation and tracking systems and equipment to be carried on board vessels or used by their crews,

(c) determining the adequacy of existing standards or specifications in relation to the above matters or the extent to which such standards are being complied with, or

(d) a possible prosecution under the Merchant Shipping Acts,

and where in the view of the Minister there is no other reasonable and practical alternative source of information available to him or her.

(3) Any decision by the Minister under subsection (2) is subject to—

(a) prior consultation with the Board and, if a tribunal has been established by the Minister to inquire into the particular marine casualty, with the tribunal, and

(b) confirmation by the Board and the tribunal that neither proposes to raise the vessel in question as part of any investigation.

(4) Where the relevant party proposes to raise such a vessel, that party shall notify the owner of the vessel of such intention, of the date which it is proposed to raise the vessel, and in due course of the location where the raised vessel will be kept.