Weekly Snapshot

The week kicked off with Donald Trump being sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, proclaiming in his inaugural address that "the golden age of America begins right now." Bold words, but let’s be honest—the real headline was Melania’s hat, which resembled something the Hamburglar would rock if he moonlighted as a fashion icon. All eyes may have been on Trump's address, the various 'executive orders' he passed, and for BPA what a new UK trade tariff regime might look like, but Melania’s headwear certainly stole the show!

Meanwhile, back in the UK, Defence Secretary John Healey has laid down the gauntlet, declaring that any Russian ships damaging British underwater cables will face the wrath of the Royal Navy. In other words, mess with our internet, and we’ll mess with your ship. Healey even ordered a Royal Navy submarine to pop up and say a very British “Oi, mate, what do you think you’re doing?” to a suspected Russian spy ship. 

Elsewhere, UK businesses are facing critical financial distress at record levels. A perfect storm of weak consumer confidence, higher borrowing costs, and wage increases has left many struggling to keep the lights on. Analysts are warning that 2025 might be the year thousands of businesses finally hang up the "Back in 5 Minutes" sign for good. On the bright side (yes, there is one), the Ministry of Defence and Rolls-Royce have shaken hands on a £9 billion deal to develop fancy new nuclear submarine reactors. Not only will they be more efficient and eco-friendly (because nothing says “green energy” like nuclear subs), but they’ll also create thousands of UK jobs. Win-win!

At BPA Towers, Mark attended a Temporary Moorings Offshore Wind Workshop in Glasgow, while Richard decided to keep things consistent by... also going to Glasgow and was at the Scottish Renewables conference, an offshore wind ports meeting and a Burns-themed dinner, where haggis had its moment in the spotlight. The rest of us held down the fort at Park Street, juggling back-to-back meetings and wondering why everyone else got to eat haggis. For anyone else celebrating Burns Night this weekend,  Slàinte mhath!

Meanwhile, also in Scotland, in the Northern Isles we are excited to see that the CEO of the Port of Lerwick, Calum Grains is leading the 'Up Helly Aa' festival celebrations, which are currently underway in Shetland. Calum, who has been growing his beard accordingly and will be kitted out in full Viking attire during the events, has the prestigious 'Guizer Jarl' position which is the Chief Guizer, the leader of the Jarl Squad who are the Vikings for the day. This is a great honour in the Northern Isles and beyond so a sincere congratulations to him. Another of Scottish port representatives are also in Shetland to join in the festivities.

Finally, it wouldn’t be my turn for the Snapshot intro without a classic British weather warning! With Storm Eowyn is rolling in, bringing winds of up to 80mph overnight to Ireland and now to Scotland, with the rest of the UK getting slapped with wind, rain, and snow. So, batten down the bins, rescue your garden furniture, and hunker down for the weekend in protective Viking attire!

Eileen

British Ports Association

BPA responds to UK ETS consultation

This week we responded to the consultation on details of the expansion of the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). The UK ETS is expanding to cover domestic maritime emissions, which will likely include all emissions during a UK port call from any vessels. We are opposed to at-berth emissions from vessels on an international voyage being included for the time being, as these emissions are partly covered by the EU ETS and there are no corresponding measures to support at-berth emissions reduction. Our response also included requests that government:

• Introduce a “de minimis threshold” and additional exemptions for certain vessels and ferry services to avoid imposing any undue administrative burden on operators and ports.
• Delay requirements on offshore vessels to align with EU ETS deadline of 1 January 2027 to protect the UK’s competitiveness in this critical sector.
• Introduce a pilot review period, ‘emergency brake’, or alternative mechanism to reverse the inclusion of maritime emissions if the EU or other international schemes are expanded or introduced to cover the same emissions which would result in ports and operators having to comply with multiple schemes. 
• To select 'Option A' over 'Option B' in its approach to the Irish Sea, which is a more proportionate response to the challenge of maintaining a level playing field for operators there.

You can download our response here.

New Measures to Reduce Underwater Noise

The UK Government have introduced new measures to curb underwater noise from marine development and unexploded ordinance and set out their intended next steps in a new policy paper on the subject. Future measures include a potential reduction in noise threshold values across all UK waters for both impulsive and continuous noise sources.

Defra say they are also committed to minimising impacts from both continuous noise and impulsive noise from other sources and that innovations across all industries to minimise noise impacts are therefore encouraged. Defra and the devolved administrations will be considering noise threshold values for introduction across all UK waters for both impulsive and continuous noise sources. Members can read more in BPA Circular 018.

PMSC Steering Group meeting and refresh update 

BPA attended the MCA Port Marine Safety Code Steering Group meeting this week and has provided the following brief update:

• The DfT said the refreshed PMSC would be published imminently and it will be slightly renamed as the Port and Marine Facilities Safety Code to emphasise the inclusion of non statutory harbour authority facilities
• Once released we will share and run a briefing session for members  
• The MCA detailed the updates to the Guide to Good Practice which they suggested will align better with the structure of the revised Code and said this should be published alongside the Code
• The 2025 PMSC Compliance Exercise will be launched six months after the publication of the Code so that ports can have time to digest the new arrangements 
• However, in terms of Duty Holders the key principles of the Code will remain as they are now, so ports can therefore continue to train board members and NEDs
• On personnel, the MCA’s Ports & VTS Manager and the Ports & VTS  Advisor, who lead on the Code and compliance are both leaving the agency shortly, so we hoping the MCA maintaining momentum at an important time with the Code’s evolution

BPA Webinar Invitation - Port Industry Trends and Trade

We are pleased to announce a new event outlining the UK's port traffic trends for 2024, and forward-looking analysis of 2025. The webinar will be delivered by Stephen Taylor of Port Centric Logistics Partners. The session will provide attendees with insight into:

• UK Port Performance: Which cargo types performed well in 2024 and which struggled, and why?
• 2025 Outlook: Predictions for key sectors, highlighting potential growth and risk areas
• Sectoral Insights: Improve your insight into the port sector as a whole to better inform decision-making through the coming year.

This webinar is open to BPA port members, and associate members. It is designed to be a high level overview, with time for Q&A at the end. 

The webinar is on Wednesday 29 January, 10:30 - 11:30. You are welcome to share this invitation with those in your organisation you feel may benefit from attending. Registration Link: Eventbrite 

Special Economic Zones and Freeports: more work needed to benefit the communities they serve

This week the Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES) published a new report on Special economic zones (click link here). The guide suggested that Special Economic Zones (SEZs), including freeports and investment zones, risk rewarding companies whose growth extracts wealth from local communities. 

The guide explores case studies of businesses operating in SEZs in the UK and provides insight and commentary on SEZ policy under the new government and suggested the long term impacts might be “uneven”. However, it said that SEZs do have the potential to drive positive change if they are implemented in a way that passes the benefits to workers, communities and the social economy.

The CLES said the guide is the first in a sequence of releases it is producing examining SEZs, with further work expected to explore how they can be used to create better local outcomes, aligned with the government’s goal of fair growth.