In light of the upcoming elections in the UK and the feeling of uncertainty, the British ports Association launched its six key policy priorities for the 2019 UK General Election, paying attention to a swift to Brexit, safety, planning, connectivity, making the most of UK maritime, and fisheries.
Maritime UK has issued its general election manifesto on behalf of the UK’s £46.1 billion maritime industries consisting of shipping, ports, services, engineering, science and leisure marine, following the recent Brexit developments.
In light of the upcoming Brexit changes, the UK Peel Ports, being the UK’s second-largest port operator, experienced an increased cargo traffic shifting to other gateways in an effort to avoid over-dependence on Dover in southern England, Europe’s busiest ferry port, as Reuters reports.
Although the Port of Rotterdam has been preparing for a long time for Brexit, it paused its additional preparations for a no-deal Brexit following UK’s announcement for the Brexit extension on January 31, 2020.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposed to the Port of Rotterdam to hold its preparations in light of the recent developments.
The UK and EU struck a deal on Brexit, on Thursday morning, October 17, now waiting for the British parliament’s vote, with the UK Chamber of Shipping welcoming the agreement and ensuring that they will continue to trade freely with its European partners.
The British Ports Association (BPA) and Currency UK, published a report on the decline in the value of the pound. The publication plots sterling against the US dollar and the euro and explores three aspects on the economy: exports, energy and infrastructure.
In light of the upcoming Brexit, the UK Government signed freight capacity deals with Brittany Ferries, DFDS, P&O and Stena Line that ensure that important medicines will still be imported to the UK after Brexit whatever the circumstances.
In a letter to the EU’s Chief Negotiator for the exit of the UK from the EU, Michel Barnier, ECSA and its member the UK Chamber of Shipping, strongly urged for a negotiated settlement that includes a transition period. The letter underlines the economic repercussions on both the EU and the UK, in case of a no-deal scenario at this late stage.
The Port of Rotterdam Authority, the Port of Amsterdam Authority, PortBase, all partners including Customs as well as all the relevant municipalities are putting their efforts to prepare for a possible no-deal Brexit on Thursday, 31 October 2019, in attempts to mitigate any delays coming from additional customs formalities at Rotterdam en Vlaardingen ferry terminals.
With the UK set to leave the EU on Thursday, October 31, the Port of Gothenburg is getting ready to deal with the effects and consequences it will incur for ship freights between Sweden and the UK and the handling of non-UK bound freight at the port.
