Nick Rogers is the London Assembly member for South West London and the London Assembly Conservatives Transport Spokesman
There’s a scene in Ridley Scott’s recent film ‘Napoleon’ where the Emperor, frustrated by the British ambassador, yells: ‘You think you’re so great because you have boats!’ It is an amusing moment in an otherwise rather forgettable film.
In reality, the Emperor didn’t take much of an interest in matters maritime, but a couple of his quotes ring true; upon boarding HMS Bellerophon following his surrender after defeat at Waterloo, Napoleon reportedly said, ‘wherever wood can swim, I am sure to find this flag of England.’ Couple this with his more famous quote that ‘England is a nation of shopkeepers’ and you realise that, actually, Napoleon was pretty close to the mark.
Britain has always been a seafaring nation; our rise to global prominence tracks our increasing mastery of the oceans. And although the context may have changed, the maritime sector remains as important today as it’s ever been; it is commonly held that 90% of the goods we use are transported around the world on ships.
The UK maritime sector includes port facilities, the shipping fleet, maritime professional services, engineering, and the leisure marine sector. The sector employs 185,000 people across the country and contributes nearly £40 billion to the economy. London is the world’s leading maritime professional services centre, which itself contributes £4.4 billion to the UK economy and employs 10,000 people in areas such as insurance, shipbroking, and maritime law. The contribution of the commercial shipping and maritime services industry to London’s wider economy is therefore significant, and is felt across every other sector, but is often unknown and under-appreciated, a phenomenon the industry terms ‘sea-blindness’.
In London politics there is, it appears, no one quite as ‘sea-blind’ as the Mayor. London’s economy relies on supply chains running smoothly, which in turn demands a healthy and growing maritime sector, and yet the Mayor takes little to no interest in these issues, despite proclaiming himself ‘the most business-friendly mayor of all time’.
Commercial shipping is more vulnerable to global events than most sectors. In a break from ‘sea-blindness’, recent events have given consumers an appreciation of both the fragility and importance of global supply chains. The pandemic caused massive disruption worldwide, but perhaps a better illustration of the impact a single event can have came with the 2021 Ever Given incident, when that vessel blocked the Suez Canal for six days, stranding at least 369 other vessels and nearly $10 billion worth of trade. Right now, attacks by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea are causing ship operators to divert vessels away from the Suez Canal to the much longer, and therefore more expensive, route around the Cape of Good Hope. These additional costs will be passed down ultimately to the consumer, just at a time when inflation is beginning to ebb.
All this is to highlight how fragile this vital sector can be. Given how commercial shipping has been upended in recent years, during the pandemic and with subsequent events, a hands-on Mayor would be engaging with the industry to understand how to build resilience and ensure that London’s supply chains remain strong; yet there is no evidence of such engagement from Sadiq Khan. The Mayor could and should complete an assessment of the needs of London’s shipping industry to understand how he could use his significant formal and informal powers to consolidate London’s position as the global maritime capital; all the more pressing given increasing competition from cities such as Singapore.
Industry insiders also point to an increasing shortage of maritime skills, with a notable decrease in homegrown maritime talent; most students enrolled on UK maritime business courses are international, while the UK continues to lose its share of global seafarers; between 2005 and 2014, the UK’s share fell from 2.8 per cent to 1.4 per cent. This is an area where the Mayor could have serious influence through his devolved Adult Education Budget. Again, Mayoral engagement with the sector and an assessment of its skills and training needs is of critical importance to ensure that London has a pipeline of skilled workers standing ready to help the city maintain its status as the UK’s largest port.
The inception of the Thames Freeport was one of the most significant developments in recent years for London’s commercial shipping sector, yet we have not heard a peep from the Mayor. It is difficult not to read this as a political decision; possibly seeking to avoid association with new Brexit global trading opportunities or a supposed ‘Thatcherite’ innovation. Surely the most business-friendly Mayor would put politics aside and embrace the economic opportunities that this initiative provides for London?
The Thames Freeport was announced in March 2021 and as of March 2023 was given the go ahead to constitute its board and start operating fully, following the approval of the final business case by the UK Government. The benefits include 21,000+ new jobs with significant investment in training and skills, £400 million port investment into some of the most deprived areas in the region, £2.6 billion additional GVA, 1,700 acres of development land and over £4.5 billion in new public and private investment. However, my familiar refrain applies; there has been no engagement from the Mayor with this vital initiative which will provide skilled, well-paid jobs for Londoners and help grow the city’s economy.
London International Shipping Week is a biennial event bringing together some of the most important players in global shipping. Given the importance of the sector for London’s businesses and consumers, one would assume that the Mayor would be fully engaged in this high-profile international event. Sadly, I am told he attended just one event in his eight years as Mayor.
The story of the Mayor’s lack of interest in this cornerstone industry is played out in other areas and is emblematic of his approach as Mayor; hands-off, distant and with a distinct lack of interest in the details of what makes this great city tick. With London’s shipping industry, as with so much else, the last eight years have been ones of significant missed opportunities.
Fortunately, like Napoleon, the incumbent Mayor is about to meet his Waterloo. I have no doubt that the incoming administration will take a far more pragmatic engaged approach to the shipping industry; a sector of vital important to Londoners’ quality of life.
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Author: Nicholas Rogers
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