DfTc, Kate, Head of UK SHORE R&D Projects
I oversee the DfT’s research and development funding for maritime decarbonisation through the UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) programme. In a typical week, I mix working from home and the Leeds office, as well as regularly visiting colleagues in Birmingham and London, and visiting projects across the UK.
As part of London International Shipping Week 2023, I was able to play a vital role in showcasing our maritime decarbonisation efforts on the world stage. After weeks of collaboration with colleagues across government, both in the UK and internationally, my team and I delivered the first-ever Clean Maritime Day. The Secretary of State and leaders from across government and industry convened for a showcase of UK SHORE-funded projects, as well as a series of presentations and panel discussions by leading experts.
I also facilitated a UK–Netherlands green shipping event, hosted by the Dutch Embassy in London. This event was the culmination of months of negotiations and meant I got to visit the Netherlands earlier in the year. I secured agreement from both nations to jointly fund the maritime sector to develop ‘green shipping corridors’ – zero emission maritime routes between the two nations. This first-of-a-kind funding for the maritime industry was announced at Shipping Week and the event provided an opportunity for government, industry, and academia from both countries to come together and plan out the next steps. I found it incredibly rewarding to facilitate the event and see the impact it will have on supporting the maritime sector towards Net Zero.
DfTc, Dominic, Head of Promotions & Partnerships
My role is Head of Promotions and Partnerships in the Maritime Directorate. On day one of the London International Shipping Week 2023, my team and I arranged for our Secretary of State for Transport, The Rt Hon Mark Harper MP, to take a trip down the Thames under the iconic Tower Bridge on an Artemis eFoiler – a fully electric vessel manufactured in Belfast that flies above the surface of the water on a hydrofoil. The development of the vessel has been partly funded by the UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) programme. Our Secretary of State used the opportunity to announce the next round of funding for UK SHORE, with an £80 million investment for Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure.
I later met the Secretary of State and the team at Number 10 Downing Street, where the Secretary of State chaired a roundtable on Artificial Intelligence in maritime with senior industry leaders, academics and Government Ministers. I then had to rush over to Lancaster House, where Baroness Vere, who was Maritime Minister at the time, chaired a Future Leaders Roundtable on driving technological change in the sector. That same morning, several events were also taking place aboard Trinity House Vessel Galatea, a buoy tender working vessel which is used to maintain maritime navigation aids for shipping. My team and I arranged for the vessel to be sailed down from Harwich, to be berthed alongside HMS Belfast for the week.
London International Shipping Week demonstrates the variety of work Dominic and Kate are both involved in as G7 policy advisors, working closely with Ministers and industry stakeholders on cutting-edge policy. Thankfully not every week is this busy, but the work is always this varied!