The Freight Transport Association has welcomed a report from the House of Commons’ Select Committee, which says UK ports should be able to compete on an equal footing with rivals.
The Transport Select Committee report on the Government’s review of ports policy says UK ports should be able to compete with ones in Europe, which enjoy a greater level of funding and other support.
It identified two major priorities facing the successful development of UK ports, including government investment in transport infrastructure. The Committee said: “The Government has a fundamental responsibility to the transport infrastructure of the UK: its major roads, railways and rivers and canals. Its responsibility lies not only in the renewal and, where required, the expansion of this infrastructure, but also in ensuring that the freight that moves on it can do so easily, quickly and sustainably.”
It also highlighted flaws in the planning system: "The planning system in the UK is slow and too expensive as it applies to the ports industry,” the Committee said. “These inefficiencies and costs threaten the continual competitiveness and viability of a vital national industry.”
According to the FTA, competitor ports on the continent do not suffer from these problems as governments across the Channel are willing to fund rail connections across countries, and ports there receive far quicker decisions on plans to develop port capacity.
The Association’s head of rail freight and global supply chain policy, Christopher Snelling, said, “The UK’s ports are crucial to the whole of the British economy. Every product or material that is not manufactured in the UK has to be imported, mostly by sea. Most of our exports also leave the UK via this route. So the future of our ports system is crucial for every business and every consumer in the UK. It will affect the availability and price of everything from bananas to computers, and the competitiveness of British industry.
“If the UK’s ports lack the ability to expand capacity they will be superseded by larger ports in Europe, and the UK will lose ‘Port of Call’ status. This would mean that large container ships from China would dock at ports such as Rotterdam, and the UK would receive a ‘feeder’ service from there. This would add more costs, delays and uncertainty to the delivery of all sea-going goods to the UK.”
The Select Committee’s Report is available at www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/transport_committee.cfm
