The EU's executive arm, the European Commission, said tougher rules on the dismantling of old vessels would take some time to formulate but that the 27 EU countries could take action in the meantime.

"There is an urgent need for binding international rules, but until an international solution is found, the EU should tackle the problem caused by the ship dismantling of state-owned ships and warships," Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said.

The Commission estimates that 200 to 600 large merchant vessels are broken up each year for their scrap metal and that the number is set to rise with the phase-out of single hulled ships in favour of a safer double-hull form.

Most of the dismantling is done in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. The industry provides thousands of jobs but accident rates are high and the work often pollutes stretches of coastline.

"Many ships from Europe and around the world are broken up in South Asia in appalling conditions which lead to hundreds of deaths and injuries each year and serious coastal pollution," Dimas said.

"The EU has a duty to take action to protect the health and safety of the workers involved and reduce the pollution these activities are causing," he said, as the Commission issued a "Green Paper" for public debate on the topic.