# Merchant Shipping Act 1995, Section 5: Duty to show British flag.


(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, a British ship, other than a fishing vessel, shall hoist the red ensign or other proper national colours—
(a) on a signal being made to the ship by one of Her Majesty’s ships (including any ship under the command of a commissioned naval officer); and
(b) on entering or leaving any foreign port; and
(c) in the case of ships of 50 or more tons gross tonnage, on entering or leaving any British port.
(2) Subsection (1)(c) above does not apply to a small ship (as defined in section 1(2)) registered under Part II.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1995/21/section/5 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/merchant-shipping-act-1995/section-5
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.