Committee publication · Report · 14 November 2025 · HC 1028
4th Report - National Policy Statement for Ports
From: Transport Committee
Inquiry: National Policy Statement for Ports
Government response deadline: 14 January 2026
Summary
The Transport Committee's fourth report scrutinises the Government's draft revised National Policy Statement for Ports (Ports NPS), published June 2025. The 2012 NPS required updating to reflect changes in technology, policy and economic context. The Committee welcomes the revision's presumption in favour of port development and market-led approach, but identifies areas needing improvement: demand forecasts should include non-freight activity; ports should receive Critical National Priority status to facilitate energy infrastructure development; and provisions on dredging and marine licences require clarification to streamline planning.
Key findings
- Port freight demand forecasts should be treated as indicative rather than definitive, and must incorporate non-freight activities (offshore energy, cruises, passenger transport) which represent significant growth areas with substantial infrastructure requirements.
- Ports should be granted Critical National Priority (CNP) status to reinforce their essential role in the supply chain and energy transition. Energy infrastructure has received CNP status, but ports—critical support infrastructure for offshore wind—have been omitted despite Government recognition of ports as a 'foundational industry'.
- The draft NPS must clarify its applicability to developments directed into the DCO process under section 35 of the Planning Act 2008 to remove ambiguity for decision-makers.
- Design policy language should be rebalanced to emphasise functionality, safety and environmental impact over aesthetic considerations; ports are inherently industrial environments where 'good design' cannot achieve conventional aesthetic standards.
- Decarbonisation and modal shift policies require stronger articulation and explicit integration with the Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy, Climate Change Act targets, and EU comparative standards to provide clarity and consistency for the sector.
Recommendations
- Port freight demand forecasts should be treated as indicative guides rather than rigid constraints, and future forecasts must incorporate non-freight activity (offshore energy, cruises, passenger transport, decommissioning, shipbuilding).
- The Government should grant ports Critical National Priority status to reinforce their primacy in the infrastructure and supply chain, protect them from harmful development, and ensure consistent treatment with other essential national infrastructure.
- The Department should amend the wording of paragraph 1.2.7 to explicitly confirm the NPS's applicability to projects directed into the Development Consent Order process under section 35 of the Planning Act 2008.
- The NPS should clarify that good design in port developments is primarily in support of functionality, safety and minimising environmental impact, acknowledging the limitations of aesthetic design in inherently industrial environments.
- The Government should articulate more clearly the priority for supporting modal shift in onward transport from ports, and set out explicit expectations for facilitating electricity grid supply and connections to decarbonise port operations.
- The Government must address the implications of the Finch judgment and insert guidance on how emissions should be assessed for Environmental Impact Assessments in the context of ports.
Tone
CriticalTopics
Key actors
Ruth Cadbury, Keir Mather, Philip Grindrod, Mike Alcock, Robbie Owen, Mark Simmonds, Stephanie Kenyon, Cathy Hall
Notable line
“Ports are indispensable to the UK's supply chain both for import and export of goods, and for development of energy infrastructure.”
Key Quotes
“… port development can itself drive growth in freight”
“… the work and operations of the ports sector were often "misunderstood", which could lead decision-makers to make incorrect inferences about their needs.”
“While we are seeing energy projects prioritised in the planning system, the same level of support is not consistently extended to the important supporting infrastructure needed at ports.”
“CNP status would have played "an important role in protecting ports and harbours from inappropriate development."”
“… designation of offshore wind as a CNP shows support for that form of primary development. That calls for development of the requisite port infrastructure to support it, so in a sense, these two things dovetail together.”
“The National Policy Statement could say quite a lot there about the need for other Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects not to harm existing port operations and, importantly, their growth potential.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗