Steve Parker’s Column
A variety pack of things!
BIFAlink is the official magazine of the British International Freight Association Redfern House, Browells Lane, Feltham TW13 7EP Tel: 020 8844 2266 (A company limited by guarantee. Registered in England: 00391973. VAT Registration: 216476363) Director General Steve Parker s.parker@bifa.org Member Policy, Compliance & External Affairs Director Pawel Jarza p.jarza@bifa.org Member Support Director Spencer Stevenson s.stevenson@bifa.org Member Services Director Carl Hobbis c.hobbis@bifa.org Member Engagement Director Denise Hill d.hill@bifa.org Senior Policy Advisor – Ocean & Legal matters Robert Windsor r.windsor@bifa.org Policy & Compliance Advisor – Customs Igor Popovics i.popovics@bifa.org Policy & Compliance Advisor – Sustainable Logistics Mike Jones m.jones@bifa.org Policy & Compliance Advisor – Sustainable Logistics Jamie McKean j.mckean@bifa.org Communications Manager Natalie Pitts n.pitts@bifa.org Editorial Co-ordinator Sharon Hammond s.hammond@bifa.org Membership Supervisor Sarah Milton s.milton@bifa.org Web site: www.bifa.org E-mail: bifa@bifa.org Published by Park Lane Publishing peter@parklanepublishingltd.com Contributors Steve Parker, Robert Windsor, Spencer Stevenson, Carl Hobbis, Sharon Hammond, Igor Popovics, Denise Hill, Mike Jones, Pawel Jarza, Natalie Pitts Note to media: If you wish to use items in this magazine that are older than one month, please contact the editorial co- ordinator 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.
A s I wrote my column for June, it became apparent that there is information on a number of important, but very different topics that I need to share with you. Conference and Multimodal This issue will be published between two major events in BIFA’s calendar – our National Conference and Multimodal 2025. Our National Conference was very successful, with so many great speakers who sacrificed their time to share their knowledge with us. The after-dinner speech from Kriss Akabusi will live long in the memory. What a life he has led and he shared it with such emotion and energy.
Securing Stella Creasy MP at the 11th hour as our keynote speaker to talk and take questions on the UK-EU reset was a masterstroke. She politely but firmly told all present that the freight forwarding community is not doing enough to get our points across to government. BIFAlinkTV and BIFAlink We are making some changes to both BIFAlinkTV and BIFAlink in July. BIFAlinkTV will be rebranded BIFATV and is getting an upgrade. The initiative is almost one year old and, with over 200 episodes under our belt, we are creating a ‘production studio’ in Feltham. It isn’t as grand as it sounds but will allow us to make more of our daily dose of industry information. As I have told you many times before, we want this to be BIFA’s primary channel of communication. BIFAlink will continue, however only in a digital format. It will no longer be printed nor posted. I am sure you will understand the reasoning behind this. These days, so much news and information is consumed online, and there are the environmental impacts to consider with print. Board changes At our AGM in May, we elected our new National Chair, Keith Baguley, who replaces Charles Hogg, who has been Chair for the past two years and becomes Immediate Past Chair. We also elected Ian Mallon as Vice Chair. My thanks go to all of them who give of their time for the benefit of BIFA and its Members. Policy & Compliance reshuf fl e As you may have seen in the press releases, we have had some changes at BIFA. Robert Windsor has stepped back from his role as Member Policy and Compliance Director but remains with us looking after both Surface and Legal Policy groups. Pawel Jarza takes on an enhanced role and becomes our Member Policy, Compliance and External Affairs Director. Both of them serve our industry well and we wish them every success in the new roles. As I completed the writing of this issue’s column, there was a significant announcement by the government following the UK-EU summit about some practical commitments to improve regulatory cooperation. On behalf of its Members, BIFA has long called for more facilitated solutions in regard to how the UK trades with the EU and finally there has been some progress on this. The outcome of the summit marks a leap forward in the UK-EU’s trading relationship, after the turbulence of the last decade. Freight forwarding and logistics businesses, which manage a significant proportion of the UK’s visible supply chains with the EU, will be especially pleased with the announcements of cooperation on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures, which should cut costs, complexities and delays that disrupt trade flows. Simplifying border processes for businesses in Northern Ireland and supporting island of Ireland supply chains will also be welcomed and should facilitate smoother trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is now down to government to work out the most practical solutions. BIFA is ready to support any effort to achieve that. Finally, I am planning to be at the Multimodal 2025 Exhibition for all three days; I can be located on the BIFA stand in the BIFA Village. I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible.
Director General
June 2025 | 3
www.bifa.org
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