The introduction of the Outer Space Bill in Parliament in January 1986 has pointed to one of the significant directions in which space law is developing. Previously regarded as an area primarily for governments and international organizations, outer space is now recognized as affording opportunities within the range of other bodies or enterprises as well. The United Kingdom is a party to the main international agreements concerning outer space, starting with the Outer Space Treaty which entered into force in 1967. This country has hitherto been able to comply with its obligations on the basis that activities in outer space would be conducted by the Government, or at all events through the public sector and therefore under the Government’s control. Now that commercial opportunities are seen to arise, as well as scientific and experimental ones, a statutory framework is required for space operations such as the case of a private sector company which might procure the launch of a satellite which it would then operate itself. Broadcasting and provision of information services by satellite are obvious areas of potential commercial interest and private sector satellites are already used in the United States for telecommunications and will soon also be used for remote sensing.

In addition to providing a licensing system to satisfy the requirement of the Outer Space Treaty that activities of British nationals must be subject to authorization and continuing supervision, the Bill ensures that effect can be given to the 1972 Liability Convention by imposing an obligation to indemnify the Government. Under the Convention, the Government incurs absolute liability for damage caused to another state or its nationals; the indemnity provision is therefore likely to be combined with a condition in the licence requiring suitable liability insurance. The other international agreement covered by the Bill is the Registration Convention which entered into force in 1976. The Bill provides for a statutory register of space objects to replace the present voluntary register; this too will be supplemented by licence conditions to ensure that all the information is obtained which has to be passed on to the United Nations Secretary-General.

The matters now being covered by legislation reflect some of the developments in space law that have occurred since Sir James Fawcett’s Melland Schill lectures on International Law and the Uses of Outer Space were published in 1968. The status and role of private enterprise, state responsibility for space activities, the regulation of telecommunications and the issues to be confronted when considering direct broadcasting by satellites are some of the many aspects