Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to support and develop the UK's shipping sector.

The maritime sector plays an important role for the UK economy, facilitating 95% of our global trade, and has continued to do so throughout the Covid-19 pandemic by enabling the delivery of critical goods, including medicine and personal protective equipment. However, it has also faced significant disruption and the government has provided financial support to ensure that lifeline services and critical freight services continue to operate.

Maritime 2050, which was published in January 2019, sets out an ambitious joint plan between the government and the maritime industry for how the UK will continue to be a world leading maritime nation and develop to meet the challenges and opportunities of the future.

Given the changes that Covid-19 has caused, we are working with the maritime sector to consider where new recommendations could be made in addition to Maritime 2050, or existing recommendations accelerated, to help the maritime sector recover from Covid-19 and continue to grow. We will publish a route-map setting out these actions later in the year.