The Port of Liverpool welcomed Shipping Minister Nusrat Ghani MP last week (Wednesday 22 January) as she visited the heart of Merseyside’s maritime community.
The Minister was given a tour of the port, including the Liverpool2 container terminal, and heard about Peel Ports’ plans to help UK-based businesses reach overseas markets.
The visit followed trips earlier in the day to the offices of trade body Mersey Maritime and a new ‘knowledge hub’ being built on the Wirral.
Nusrat Ghani MP said: “I’ve been working with Mersey Maritime and Peel Ports for the last couple of years and it’s been fantastic to finally see everything that we’ve talked about in person. Maritime companies in the region are doing an excellent job and will be crucial to helping us deliver on our economic ambitions. We have a 30 year strategy to be global leaders in the maritime sector and I look forward to working with the whole sector to achieve that goal.”
Mark Whitworth, CEO Peel Ports Group said, “At a time of significant change the maritime sector needs to keep logistics simple. Using ports closest to the origin and destination minimises the impact on our constrained road and rail infrastructure and is more environmentally responsible. Reducing the dependency on key southern ports, ports like Liverpool have the ability to play a pivotal role in supporting the regeneration of the North. This is also enabled in some cases by changing mode. A switch from RORO trailer freight on the cross-channel routes to containerised cargo, between the continent and Irish Sea ports, can mitigate the impact of post-Brexit congestion on businesses operating in the North-West, Scotland and Ireland.”