Mr. Efthimios E. Mitropoulos, Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, presented the prize to Dr. Allan during a special ceremony (on Monday, 6 November) during the 97th session of the IMO Council, which met at Central Hall, Westminster, London.
The International Maritime Prize is awarded annually by IMO to the individual or organization judged to have made the most significant contribution to the work and objectives of IMO. The 96th session of the IMO Council in June 2006 took the decision to award the prize to Dr. Allan in recognition of his long service to the cause of maritime safety and the protection of the marine environment, highlighted by his work representing the United Kingdom at IMO and chairing IMO's senior technical body, the MSC, from 1999 to 2005.
The prize-giving ceremony was attended by Dr. Stephen Ladyman, United Kingdom Minister of State for Transport and other officials from the United Kingdom Department for Transport, as well as by delegations to the IMO Council and IMO staff.
Dr. Tom Allan
Dr. Allan was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and graduated from Strathclyde
University as a naval architect. He started his career in the shipbuilding industry
and joined the United Kingdom Department for Transport in 1971 as a surveyor
of ships where he began working both at the national level and internationally
at IMO.
Dr. Allan was appointed a Principal Ship Surveyor in the passenger ship section
of the United Kingdom Department for Transport in 1982 and named Chief Ship
Surveyor in 1987.
In 1994, Dr. Allan played a leading role as a member of IMO's Panel of Experts
established to review the safety of passenger ferries after the Estonia disaster
and he was elected Chairman of the Sub-Committee on Stability, Load Lines and
on Fishing Vessels Safety (SLF) in 1995. During the next four years of his chairmanship,
the SLF Sub-Committee addressed and completed many important issues, including
the initiation of the revision of the 1988 Load Lines Protocol, the consolidation
of the harmonization of damage stability requirements in the International Convention
for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) and the groundwork preparation for the
revision of the Fishing Vessel Safety Code and Guidelines.
Meanwhile,
Dr. Allan was appointed the United Kingdom's first Permanent Representative
to the IMO in 1998.
After being unanimously elected chairman of the MSC in 1999, Dr. Allan led the
Committee until the end of 2005, using his negotiating skills and ability to
inspire co-operation and consensus between nations, resulting in the adoption
of many amendments and new regulations, including new safety standards for bulk
carriers and the fast-track introduction of a new global maritime security regime,
including the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code.
Dr. Allan is also credited with being instrumental, through his relationship-building
skills and diplomacy, in helping the Organization to secure agreement on the
introduction of the Voluntary IMO Member State Audit Scheme. He has been a driving
force, within the UK Government and at IMO, behind the proposals to improve
and modernize the Organization's headquarters, an initiative which is currently
under way.
International
Maritime Prize
The International Maritime Prize consists of a sculpture in the form of a dolphin
and includes a financial award. The winner of the annual prize is also invited
to write a paper on a theme relating to the work of IMO. The paper is published
in IMO's quarterly magazine, IMO News.
Previous winners
Winners of the prize since 2000:
| 2005 | - Dr. Tom Allan (United Kingdom) | |
| 2004 | - Mr. Luis Martínez (Mexico) | |
| 2003 | - Mr William O'Neil (Canada) | |
| 2002 | - Mr. Frank Wall (United Kingdom) | |
| 2001 | - Mr. Giuliano Pattofatto (Italy) (posthumously) | |
| 2000 | - Mr. Heikki Juhani Valkonen (Finland) |
Briefing 42, 7 November 2006
For further information please contact:Lee Adamson, Head, Public Information Services on 020 7587 3153 (media@imo.org) or
Natasha Brown, External Relations Officer on 020 7587 3274 (media@imo.org).