“EUROPE must fight,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said this week, as she delivered a combative State of the European Union address.

She had Russia and Israel in her sights as she said it, but she could equally have been referring to any number of faltering EU policy problems on her plate right now, too many of which are affecting shipping directly.

On paper, shipping’s newfound status as a critical component of the EU trade agenda is good news.

Open trade to strengthen supply chains and the promised bonfire of red tape for SMEs, which, lest we forget, are the backbone of the European shipping industry, were both there front and centre in von der Leyen’s swashbuckling speech.

Behind closed doors, the Brussels dialogue with shipping representatives continues in much the same vein, we are told by senior industry figures. All the right questions are being asked and there is an acknowledgement that shipping is a substantive stakeholder.

This is good news. Shipping has status and a platform.

The problem is, right now there’s a lot of words and not a great deal of progress.

The lopsided trade deal with the US inked back in July was supposed to offer some certainty to business, but that remains a rare commodity right now and decisions are still stalling.

Meanwhile, the policy progress promised has not materialised.

A year on from the Draghi report, which set out 383 recommendations revitalising the bloc’s flagging economy in the race against global rivals such as China and the US, only 11% of them have been implemented.

Most of the components critical to shipping’s planning are yet to materialise, beyond the pages of speeches and reports.

We are still waiting for the EU Maritime Industrial Strategy. We are still waiting for crucial guidance on what the existing Clean Industrial Deal can deliver in terms of state aid for shipping, clean fuels and various other pivotal points of interest.

If the International Maritime Organization manages to adopt the Net-Zero Framework next month, then will the European shipping sector be ready to capitalise on a global market for clean fuels as planned? Or will they be leaving China to dominate yet another market in the same way that Europe watched electric vehicles and solar slip from their grasp?

If the EU shipping market is feeling frustrated by the pace of policy progress right now then they should at least feel some solidarity when many of them arrive in London next week.

Nobody left in UK shipping is naive enough to think that any big policy moves are going to get signed off, given other priorities right now. But the basic ask for a more predictable, stable and attractive place to do business is not an unreasonable request.

A post-Brexit comparing of notes next week is likely to leave shipping leaders on both sides of the channel equally sceptical about the growth promises of politicians.

Richard Meade
Editor-in-chief, Lloyd’s List

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