The UK Major Ports Group (UKMPG) has launched a 10-point plan to turbo-charge the UK’s ports and maritime industry and increase its global competiveness post-Brexit.
According to a statement, the initiative has been launched in coordination with the British Ports Association (BPA) and proposes a number of changes to planning law and other legislation that will allow ports to invest more quickly in new technologies.
The proposals include exploring the possibility of ‘port zones’ around specific port areas and hinterlands, with the goal of increasing their global presence and improving the regional economy.
It also calls for a review of environmental regulations and the creation of a system which is good for trade and ensures high supply chain standards.
The plan also includes a range of proposals ranging from streamlining planning processes and revising the definition of ‘operational land’ to better reflect the modern major ports industry.
Speaking about the plan, Tim Morris, CEO if the UKMPG, said: “In the post-Brexit world, trade needs to be hard-wired into all our policy-making.
“Our ports are the gateway to UK trade and it is imperative that we have the right framework in place to allow them to invest in the future and make the UK as attractive for international trade as possible. UKMPG members already invest more than half a billion pounds in the UK each year.
“They are ambitious to do more, boosting the UK’s capability to trade and also, crucially, jobs and prosperity in the UK’s coastal communities.
“Our plan focuses on ten common-sense, pragmatic and practical ways the Government could create a better environment for ports, for trade and for investment, helping not just the ports themselves but coastal communities all over Britain.
“With the challenges and opportunities the post-Brexit world presents, we urge Ministers to look carefully at these proposals.”
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