Maritime UK News

Maritime UK, the umbrella organisation for the UK’s maritime sector, has appointed Chris Shirling-Rooke MBE as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He will move over from Mersey Maritime to Maritime UK in the early summer and Maritime UK thanks Mersey Maritime for helping to facilitate a seamless transfer. Chris Shirling-Rooke is currently CEO of Mersey Maritime, a maritime regional cluster organisation based in the Liverpool City Region. In this role, he has championed the importance o...

Launched to coincide with the IMO International Women in Maritime Day, Maritime UK is pleased to introduce a new social media campaign aimed at promoting STEM career opportunities for girls in the maritime industry. The maritime industry is vital to global trade and plays a significant role in the global economy, with an estimated 90% of world trade carried by sea. Within the United Kingdom (UK), the sector supports over 1 million jobs. However, women remain underrepresented in many parts of th...

Mersey Maritime is set to secure significant Government backing to fund its mission to take its successful ‘cluster’ model to ‘level up’ other coastal regions of the UK. Mersey Maritime has helped transform the Liverpool city region maritime sector into a £5bn powerhouse and is being tasked by Government with doing the same across the UK. In recent months Chris Shirling-Rooke, Mersey Maritime's chief executive, and its head of partnerships and policy, Simon Eardl...

The Transport Select Committee has published a report on the UK Government’s Maritime 2050 strategy, little over a year after it opened an inquiry to scrutinise the progress made by the Government in delivering its recommendations. Background Maritime UK has worked with the Transport Select Committee over the course of this inquiry by submitting a written response in April 2022. Their Chief Executive - Ben Murray also appeared as a witness before the Committee in June 2022 to give eviden...

A consortium led by zero-emission vessel provider - ACUA Ocean in partnership with zero-emission infrastructure provider and National Maritime UK Marine Hydrogen Working Group partner - Unitrove has won a multi-million pound UK government grant in a major push to decarbonise the maritime sector. The ‘Hydrogen Innovation – Future Infrastructure & Vessel Evaluation and Demonstration (HI-FIVED)’ consortium will receive over £3.8 million of funding to build and showcase...

Maritime UK launches its comprehensive and ground-breaking Offshore Wind Plan at the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult’s Operations & Maintenance Centre of Excellence in Grimsby, with the support of Associated British Ports. The Offshore Wind Plan makes a series of recommendations for how the maritime sector, the offshore wind sector, and governments can work together to deliver maximum economic benefit from the growth of offshore wind across the maritime supply chain in sector...

Maritime UK is to deliver a nationwide ‘roadshow’ to inspire girls to consider Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) careers in the maritime sector. Maritime UK has been awarded £100,000 in grant funding from the Merchant Navy Welfare Board (MNWB) on behalf of the Department for Transport (DfT) to deliver a Maritime Roadshow for Girls throughout 2023. The roadshow will aim to encourage Key Stage 3 girls to choose STEM subjects and to give the students greater awar...

Following the announcement of the second round of ‘Levelling Up’ funding from the Government, industry body - Maritime UK has welcomed the inclusion of a number of projects focused on the sector and more broadly on the vitally important coastal communities around the United Kingdom (UK). Maritime is known to make a massive contribution to the country’s economy, being worth £116 billion and supporting over a million jobs, and has a major contribution to make to levelling...

Maritime UK, the umbrella organisation for the UK’s maritime sector, has appointed Robin Mortimer as its new Chair and Tom Boardley as Vice Chair. Robin Mortimer was nominated by the British Ports Association and UK Major Ports Group, while Tom Boardley was nominated by the UK Chamber of Shipping. New Chair and Vice Chair appointed Maritime UK will be working closely with the UK government on its refresh to the Clean Maritime Plan Currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO)...

The Maritime Skills Commission is announcing a new partnership with Port Skills and Safety Ltd to deliver the first Skills Intelligence Model for the maritime sector. The model will be delivered through the National Skills Academy for Rail (NSAR). In March 2022, the Maritime Skills Commission (MSC) endorsed and launched the Future Ports Workforce report which recommended clarity on which body is pioneer on port skills and a more joint working within the ports and maritime sector to drive improv...

A first Annual Report focused on the delivery of a joint project to support regional growth within the maritime sector has been launched at the latest meeting of the Maritime UK National Council chaired by its Patron, Her Royal Highness - The Princess Royal. The meeting took place at Watermen’s Hall, in London, United Kingdom (UK), on Wednesday, 07 December 2022. Regional Growth is one of the five identified priority themes of Maritime UK, which in turn correspond to key ambitions set out...

Maritime UK is launching its national awards programme for 2023, celebrating a sector worth over £116bn to the UK economy and supporting over 1 million jobs. Held for the first time in September 2019, the Maritime UK Awards are run by the industry for the benefit of the industry. From a judging panel of internationally recognised maritime leaders to an awards evening at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hull, the Maritime UK Awards are a unique and impactful way to showcase a business,...

Maritime UK is launching Version 6 of the Industry Code of Practice for Maritime Autonomous Ship Systems on 18 November, 2022. The accelerating pace of change in maritime autonomy has required updated guidance for those owning and operating Maritime Autonomous Ship Systems (MASS). While not a legal text, the Code has been used by manufacturers, service providers, and others as part of their day-to-day work. Many manufacturers have reported clients requiring compliance with the Code as a basis f...

This Green Careers Week Maritime UK is launching a new green skills project, in order to help ensure that the maritime industries have the skills required to enable its decarbonisation. The project kick starts with the appointment of Kit Williams to coordinate delivery of recommendations from the Maritime Skills Commission’s (MSC) Skills for Green Jobs Position Paper. It is being delivered through a partnership between the MSC and Cornwall Marine Network (CMN). Maritime Skills Commission...

The potential for autonomous technology to advance understanding of the constantly evolving ocean and coastlines has taken a major step forward with the launch of the National Centre for Coastal Autonomy. The UK’s first autonomous fully-integrated coastal observing and monitoring network employs the latest autonomous technologies to drive towards a net zero oceanographic capability, delivering cutting-edge science. Surface autonomous vessels A fleet of state-of-the-art surface autonomou...

Maritime UK, the umbrella body for the maritime industries, is announcing the appointment of colleagues from across the sector to its Diversity in Maritime Taskforce following the success of Maritime UK Week 2022 (10-16 October). The task force, which oversees the Diversity in Maritime programme, was launched in May 2020, in response to the government’s flagship Maritime 2050 strategy. The programme is focused on ensuring that the future maritime workforce across the shipping, ports, se...

Lloyd’s Register has been announced as a Bronze Sponsor for Maritime UK Week. Starting on 10 October, Maritime UK Week 2022 will shine a spotlight on the latest developments in the maritime sector and engage people across the UK with the world of maritime.  Maritime sector Responsible for enabling 95% of the UK’s global trade, maritime touches every part of everyone's lives. As an island nation, during the pandemic, the maritime sector’s key workers kept the UK supplie...

Maritime UK is publishing its Programme for Government. The launch coincides with the start of a UK-wide celebration of the maritime industries. The Programme for Government sets out the maritime sector’s policy objectives for the new Prime Minister and Ministers having been developed jointly with Maritime UK’s member associations. It is launched at the start of Maritime UK Week 2022. Policy proposals Maritime UK is the umbrella body and collective voice for the UK’s maritim...

Portsmouth International Port will be opening up its doors for a community open day, in celebration of Maritime UK Week. The local community, staff and their families are invited to enjoy a day of exhibitions from port partners, interactive stands and behind-the-scenes access to port operations. The open day will showcase: What the maritime industry does for Portsmouth Maritime skills, jobs and future roles Protecting the maritime and port environment Lifeline operations Portsmouth...

UK Ports has been announced as a Bronze Sponsor for Maritime UK Week. Starting on 10 October, Maritime UK Week 2022 will shine a spotlight on the latest developments in the maritime sector and engage people across the United Kingdom (UK) with the world of maritime.  Responsible for enabling 95% of the UK’s global trade, maritime touches every part of people’s lives. As an island nation, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the maritime sector’s key workers kept the UK supplied with f...

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has been announced as a Bronze Sponsor for Maritime UK Week. Starting on 10 October, Maritime UK Week 2022 will shine a spotlight on the latest developments in the maritime sector and engage people across the UK with the world of maritime. Responsible for enabling 95% of the UK’s global trade, maritime touches every part of the lives. As an island nation, during the pandemic, the maritime sector’s key workers kept the UK supplied with food, ener...

Starting on 10 October, Maritime UK Week 2022 will shine a spotlight on the latest developments in the maritime sector and engage people across the UK with the world of maritime.  Responsible for enabling 95% of the UK’s global trade, maritime touches every part of our lives. As an island nation, during the pandemic, the maritime sector’s key workers kept the UK supplied with food, energy and medicine. Now, as we move toward a greener industry, the sector is investing and grow...

Hundreds of people will have the unique opportunity to go behind the scenes on Scillonian III next month to mark Maritime UK Week. Local school children, Sea Cadets, and fans of the Isles of Scilly Steamship Group’s faithful passenger ship have been invited on board for the special, one-off event. It will give them a rare chance to go onboard Scillonian III while the vessel is in the dock in Penzance on a non-sailing day. Visitors will be able to meet the captain and crew, tour the ship&r...

PD Ports has been announced as a Bronze Sponsor for Maritime UK Week. Starting on 10 October, Maritime UK Week 2022 will shine a spotlight on the latest developments in the maritime sector and engage people across the United Kingdom (UK) with the world of maritime. Responsible for enabling 95% of the UK’s global trade, maritime touches every part of people’s lives. As an island nation, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the maritime sector’s key workers kept the UK supplied with fo...

Maritime UK, the umbrella body for the maritime sector, has welcomed The Seafarers’ Charity as the latest organisation to join the Diversity in Maritime Charter. The Seafarers’ Charity has the vision to create a world where seafarers and their families are valued and free of need and disadvantage. They’ve been working towards this goal since 1917 when they originally launched as the King George’s Fund for Sailors. Seafarers’ Charity The Seafarers’ Charity i...

Maritime UK has partnered with National Careers Week to inspire the next generation of maritime workers. National Careers Week 2023 runs from 6-11 March and aims to empower students through providing free CEIAG resources to enable students to have more informed choices about their future career opportunities. The week also empowers educators and advisors, through the sharing of case studies and experiences.  National Careers Week 2023 will see maritime celebrated on a dedicated day...

As plans emerge that Maritime UK (MUK) is to support several potential stakeholders to establish a South East regional cluster organisation reportedly led by Dieter Jaenicke, Viking Maritime Group, they do welcome the continued emergence of MUK as a single leadership association for the maritime sector, as it strives to act as a conduit for bringing coherent sector support and reduced bureaucracy to add weight to arguments for infrastructure improvements and destination making, to stimulate econ...

The Maritime Skills Commission launches the Skills for Green Jobs Position Paper. The Maritime Skills Commission (MSC) was established to ensure that the maritime sector has a pipeline of talented people to serve all parts of the sector covering shipping, ports, leisure marine, engineering, science, and professional services. The Commission is chaired by Professor Graham Baldwin, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Central Lancashire, and was established in 2020 by the Department for Transport...

Final preparations have been completed for the globally renowned maritime conference - Mersey Maritime Exchange Conference 2022, which is set to take place in Liverpool, United Kingdom, on Thursday, 23rd June 2022. In its fourth iteration, the Mersey Maritime Exchange Conference 2022, will see government ministers, politicians and leading industry figures come together to debate the most topical industry issues around the environment, innovation, technology, people, skills, regional growth and...

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) has published a new report, commissioned by Maritime UK, highlighting the major impact the industry makes on Britain’s economy. In 2019, maritime contributed £116 billion in total turnover to the UK economy, 35% higher than 2010. For every £1 of turnover generated directly by the sector, a further £1.09 was generated indirectly across the supply chain, underscoring the far-reaching impact of an industry that carries 9...