Despite some rhetorical headwind, the European Commission has congratulated the maritime community for holding the European Shipping Week in Brussel.
European Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc said after the annual event: »European Shipping Week addresses key issues currently f[ds_preview]acing European and Global shipping: investment, innovation, decarbonisation and the digitalisation of the maritime sector. Meeting the people that work in maritime transport – experiencing their knowledge and passion – is what strikes me most during ESW.« She congratulates the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) »and all other associations« who have contributed to the programme.
An official calendar of 30 high level events was supported by a number of bilateral meetings between industry and government. Patrick Verhoeven, Secretary General of ECSA and Chairman of the ESW Steering Group, looked at the importance that an event such as ESW, plays in strengthening relations between the industry and politicians.
He said: »The second edition of European Shipping Week provided an excellent platform for frank discussions about the future of European shipping policy. It was great to see that policy-makers, and industry stakeholders were not afraid to speak their minds, but were also ready to listen to each other. We must now use this momentum to give shape to an ambitious European shipping strategy for the next decade.«
With this in mind, the European shipping industry, represented by a broad number of associations, had already used the ESW to issue a joint statement. While the European Commission’s mid-term review of the EU Maritime Transport Strategy 2009-2018 was welcomed, the associations urged a new maritime strategy, too, and endorsed the emphasis on better regulation.
»Absolute priority must in this respect be given to a fundamental overhaul of the EU Reporting Formalities’ Directive. The revision should lead to a true European single window environment for maritime carriers that fully ensures the ‘reporting once’ principle and which shares all necessary cargo and conveyance data between governments and all relevant authorities«, it was said.
