National Policy Statement for Ports

Headline findings

• Committee broadly welcomes the revised NPS's continued presumption in favour of development and market-led approach, but identifies gaps in demand forecasting (non-freight activities missing), environmental protections (dredging provisions too onerous), and legal robustness.
• Government confirmed it will consider amending section 24 thresholds to trigger NSIP designation for passenger traffic and offshore development projects, addressing stakeholder concern that current rules exclude strategically significant schemes.
• Maritime sector representatives (British Ports Association, UK Chamber of Shipping, ABP) support the NPS's shift towards stimulating competition through excess capacity, but warn freight forecasts risk being misused and flag insufficient coverage of emerging sectors (SAF, hydrogen, floating offshore wind).
• Committee recommends granting ports Critical National Priority status to protect them from harmful competing development and better recognise their role in offshore energy—a status currently reserved for energy infrastructure.
• Unresolved tension: Government prioritises market-led investment without centralized planning; stakeholders request stronger policy signals and better integration with industrial strategy, maritime decarbonisation roadmap, and rail/road connectivity requirements.

Why it matters

Ports handle 96% of UK trade by volume and are critical to offshore wind deployment; the planning framework that governs their expansion shapes national energy transition, trade resilience, and economic growth for the next decade.

Tone arc

Inquiry opened receptive to Government's policy direction (June), hardened into scrutiny after stakeholder evidence (September 10) revealed gaps in freight forecasting, emerging sectors, and environmental provisions, then moderated slightly when Minister Mather (September 16) confirmed willingness to amend thresholds and consider consultation responses—but underlying divergence between market-led approach and sector desire for strategic coordination persists.

Key witnesses

Keir Mather MP (Maritime Minister, Department for Transport), Mike Alcock (Department for Transport), Philip Grindrod (Department for Transport), Mark Simmonds (British Ports Association), Stephanie Kenyon (UK Chamber of Shipping), Cathy Hall (Associated British Ports / UKMPG), Robbie Owen (National Infrastructure Planning Association)