BIFAlink February 2022

BIFAlink February 2022

February 2022 The magazine of the British International Freight Association BIFA link Issue: 378 A welcome www.bifa.org

return to live celebrations – Pages 10-13

INSIDE

6: News BIFA goes digital with training course certification 8: Policy & Compliance More bureaucracy facing UK van drivers 14: Policy & Compliance Cool chain diligence

16: Policy & Compliance Concerns about developments in the maritime environment

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Robert Keen’s Column

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Entering stage two of Brexit changes

BIFAlink is the official magazine of the British International Freight Association Redfern House, Browells Lane, Feltham TW13 7EP Tel: 020 8844 2266

One year ago, the freight and logistics sector faced one of the most significant changes to its operations in many years with Brexit heralding fundamental changes in the conduct of EU-GB trade. Twelve months on, we have entered stage two of the phased approach, with the introduction of full Customs control on goods moving between the EU and Britain, which has added to the list of additional declarations and increased the amount of supporting paperwork required. As I wrote this column in mid-January, I think it would be fair to say that however ready BIFA Members were, the new system, and some shippers and carriers, were not; administrative problems brought GVMS issues on day one, causing some congestion, delays and a need for Inland Border Facilities to be utilised.

Web site: www.bifa.org E-mail: [email protected]

(A company limited by guarantee. Registered in England: 391973. VAT Registration: 216476363) Director General Robert Keen [email protected] Executive Director Robert Windsor, Policy & Compliance – Surface & Legal

Coincidentally, I have been reading an interesting report issued recently by the consulting firm AECOM. ‘Freight Matters’ examines how the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects of EU Exit are influencing the development of the industry. Our sector has remained in the spotlight throughout 2021 and has been seen as proactive despite driver shortages and the so-called UK fuel crisis. With COVID-19, the report considers that rather than looking to a return to pre-pandemic normality, there are potential opportunities that the pandemic has opened up. The message from BIFA has not changed. In situations such as this, the advantages of using a freight forwarder become more pronounced. With a sole provider handling the goods’ preparation, documentation and transport from door-to-door, the process is seamless and gives the customer greater visibility throughout the shipment. It also alleviates the administrative burden on the customer and, in many cases, can even expedite the shipment where the provider has Authorised Economic Operator full (AEOF) and/or ‘Clearance on Wheels’ status. BIFA has said consistently that our Members will always step up and find ways of keeping goods moving; the headlines that Christmas would be cancelled may have grabbed attention but were proved premature. With EU Exit still dominating political activity, and with the likelihood this will continue for some time, the changing patterns of trade will continue to affect supply chains. The AECOM report concludes that there are many questions remaining unanswered regarding the future of freight and logistics in the UK and calls for a national freight strategy that helps to put in place the required infrastructure. Hopefully, policymakers will provide this, and the skills support needed for the vital role that our Members play Currently the BIFA Policy and Compliance team is ‘locking horns’ with the Department for Transport over the state of competition within the deepsea container shipping market. BIFA members are concerned that certain practices undertaken by the principal shipping lines, as well as easements and exemptions provided to them under competition law, are distorting the operations of the free market to the detriment of international trade. We have expressed your concerns to Robert Courts MP, Under Secretary of State for Transport at the Department for Transport. The well-documented chaos within the container shipping sector is leading to commercial power becoming increasingly concentrated, resulting in diminished market choice and competition, and distorted market conditions. In 2015, there were 27 major container shipping lines carrying global containerised trade, with the largest having a 15.3% market share. Today, there are 15 shipping lines, organised into three major alliances carrying that trade, with some analysts observing that the market share of a single alliance on certain key routes could be over 40%. The pandemic has highlighted and accelerated this development, which has also contributed to dreadful service levels and hugely inflated rates, with carriers allocating vessels to the most profitable routes with little regard to the needs of their customers. See pages 16-17 and keep reading BIFAlink to follow our representational activity on your behalf. As you read this, some of you will have had the opportunity to attend our Freight Service Awards luncheon, meeting in person to celebrate excellence across the freight forwarding industry, in an awards scheme that is now in its 33rd year and is justifiably regarded as the most prestigious in the sector. Once again, we were delighted with the range of entries received from BIFA Members that managed to take the time to document their achievements while continuing to manage their businesses through incredibly trying times, which is a testament to their tenacity. See pages 10-13 for a full run-down of the event. All awards entries demonstrated a clear understanding of overcoming last minute challenges to achieve success, which is something I suspect will characterise the year ahead.

[email protected] Executive Director Spencer Stevenson [email protected] Executive Director Carl Hobbis [email protected] Policy & Compliance Advisor – Customs Igor Popovics [email protected] Policy & Compliance Advisor – Air David Stroud [email protected] Editorial Co-ordinator Sharon Hammond [email protected] Communications Manager Natalie Pitts [email protected] Membership Supervisor Sarah Milton [email protected]

Published by Park Lane Publishing [email protected] Contributors

Robert Keen, Robert Windsor, David Stroud, Spencer Stevenson, Carl Hobbis, Sharon Hammond, Natalie Pitts, Nezda Leigh Note to media: If you wish to use items in this magazine that are older than one month, please contact the editor to ensure that the item in question still reflects the current circumstances. Please be advised that BIFA DOES NOT OFFER LEGAL ADVICE. BIFA is not a law firm and the authors of this publication are not legally qualified and do not have any legal training. The guidance and assistance set out herein are based on BIFA’s own experience with the issues concerned and should not be in any circumstances regarded or relied upon as legal advice. It is strongly recommended that anyone considering further action based on the information contained in this publication should seek the advice of a qualified professional.

Robert Keen Director General

February 2022

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News Desk

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3.3 point drop between September and November, the average has reached its highest level since January 2019. Boxship shortages push up charter rates Ian Matheson, from Impress Communications, reviews some recent news that might impact on Members’ business

The UK government has offered contracts worth £34.5 million to companies to train new lorry drivers as it battles to alleviate an ongoing supply chain squeeze caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit. The move has been widely welcomed by the industry, which has seen driver numbers shrink by a quarter since 2019, with reports suggesting that the new funding could provide training for up to 11,000 drivers. Maritime Transport has launched a new intermodal service hauled by GB Railfreight (GBRf), connecting its Birmingham Intermodal Freight Terminal (BIFT) with the port of Felixstowe, running five days per week with a capacity of 87 teu in each direction. It is Maritime’s third train to run from Felixstowe to BIFT, increasing the company’s capacity between Felixstowe and the West Midlands by 40%. The Department for Transport (DfT) has announced that it will continue its relaxation of drivers’ hours rules, which will now run until midnight on 10 February 2022. However, any business that made use of the previous relaxation will have had to complete and submit the follow-up notification form by 16 January 2022. IN THE WAREHOUSE Industrial occupiers are in a race for space with the UK experiencing the lowest level of supply ever recorded, according to research from Colliers. Only 18.1 million sq ft are available, due to demand for units continuing to be driven by the structural change in consumer spending patterns. The company added that take-up in 2021 of industrial distribution warehouses greater than 100,000 sq ft in size reached 50.7 million sq ft, up 3.6% year-on-year, a record for the sector.

ON THE OCEAN Containership charter markets entered 2022 on a strong footing with rates firming across the board and long-term charters remaining the order of the day, as a result of a dearth of vessels coming open in 2022. This is forcing container shipping lines to fix several months ahead of delivery in order to secure tonnage. Two major freight indexes, SCFI and Ningbo Containerized Freight Index (NCFI), reached record high figures on the last day of 2021 – a year marked by skyrocketing container freight rates. The SCFI surpassed the US$5,000 per teu mark for the first time in history on 31 December 2021, whilst on the same date, the NCFI reached an all-time record high of US$4,264 per feu. January saw reports of the first container stack collapse at sea in 2022, this time on board Madrid Bridge, a 13,900 teu ship run by Ocean Network Express (ONE) which was on its way to New York across the Northern Atlantic. This follows a chain of box losses at sea in 2021, which reportedly more than doubled in the period from late 2020/2021, compared with an average of 1,382 containers lost annually in 2018 and 2019. The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in the USA has taken a more aggressive stance, encouraged by a July 2021 executive order from the White House regarding ‘Competition in the American Economy’. This gave the FMC a remit to look closely at the anti- competitive practices of liner carriers – with “demurrage and detention” practices on containers attracting particular scrutiny. It has

now issued Orders of Investigation into the ONE Alliance and Wan Hai Lines. ON THE QUAYSIDE Containers are now moving in and out of China at record speeds as shippers desperately source capacity. However, port congestion in Europe and the US continues to slow the return of boxes to Asia and is stymying the recovery of global ocean supply chains, according to a joint report conducted by Container xChange and Fraunhofer CML. There was a first for the Port of Tyne when a containership of goods coming directly from China to the UK unloaded at one of the port’s terminals in South Shields. The ship was carrying a range of goods for various retailers, with the arrival marking a ‘turning point’ according to the port authority. IN THE AIR IATA has updated its lithium battery guidance document in line with the 63rd (2022) edition of the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR). Its document outlines the

definitions, classification, exceptions and prohibitions, and includes frequently asked questions (FAQ), whilst providing information to manufacturers and users of these active devices, as well as operators that must approve the carriage of active devices in cargo. >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20

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