Steve Parker’s Column
Awards celebrate record year T his issue’s column was written just after our Awards lunch, which was a hugely successful event attended by over 550 individuals who enjoyed an afternoon of networking and celebration, with excellent food in a convivial atmosphere. More people attended than ever before. There were more entrants for awards than ever before (up by 30% on 2023); and we raised more money for our nominated charity, Transaid, than ever before. We have received many notes of thanks from you our Members, as well expressing my respect for her bungee jumping off a bridge. Personally, I love these events as a chance to meet, to network, to renew friendships and even make new ones. If you attended, I hope you enjoyed the day. If you did not attend, make sure you put next year’s awards luncheon in your diary. The competition will open in June 2024 and the ceremony will take place on Thursday 16 January 2025. The Red Sea Whilst the awards were good news, I cannot avoid mentioning the bad news that is happening in the Red Sea as I write. I know it is impacting many of you greatly, and although BIFA can have very little effect on actual events, one of our pillars of activity is representation and we are doing that at every opportunity. Whether that is through press articles in the UK or supporting our global organisation FIATA with its lobbying and networking, we are calling for openness and transparency, pushing for visibility on the costs incurred and seeking reliable information on the inevitable delays. The Ocean, Road and Rail Policy Group meets on 20 February and is looking for Members to help formulate BIFA’s policy on this and other matters. If you want to share your opinions, now is the time to join the group – contact Robert Windsor (r.windsor@bifa.org) for more information. Training as some suggestions on what to do to make it even better. All are welcome, and all will be reviewed when we undertake a debrief of the event. I have passed on our thanks to Suzi Perry for being our host, as well as This is another key area for BIFA, and one that received renewed focus in 2023 with the idea from government to set up a voluntary standard of competence for forwarders. This gained some traction with support from some trade bodies and cargo owners. BIFA is pushing back against the idea as we believe the AEO standard should be sufficient. That said, all Members should be constantly looking to improve the skills of their staff and this is an area in which BIFA wants to help. As I mentioned at the awards we are working on new courses, plus new and multiple ways of delivery. But we also have some really ambitious ideas about how all members can obtain easy access to any of BIFA’s training resources and how they can achieve that in the most cost effective manner. It is early days in our strategic planning, and we will be consulting widely with members in the near future. Please look out for communications on the topic. Lastly I have had several emails about our next business leader’s forum. Please add 16 May to your diaries. One of our goals in 2024 is to improve our database in order to ensure that relevant messages reach the correct individuals within your organisation. Please get in touch with Brooke Neilson (bifacomms@bifa.org) to ensure that you are on the mailing list, and check that you are following BIFA on LinkedIn for all of the latest news.
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 Director Robert Windsor r.windsor@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 International Relations Advisor Robert Keen r.keen@bifa.org Frontier Policy Manager Pawel Jarza p.jarza@bifa.org Policy & Compliance Advisor – Customs Igor Popovics i.popovics@bifa.org Policy & Compliance Adviser – Sustainable Logistics Mike Jones m.jones@bifa.org Policy & Compliance Advisor – Air David Stroud d.stroud@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, David Stroud, Spencer Stevenson, Carl Hobbis, Sharon Hammond, Igor Popovics, Robert Keen, Denise Hill, Mike Jones 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.
Director General
February 2024 | 3
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