Transport Committee Reacts To Government’s Ports NPS Response

Key Points

• The Chair of the Transport Committee, Ruth Cadbury, has commented on the Government’s formal response to the Committee’s report on the draft revised National Policy Statement (NPS) for Ports.
• The Government published its response on 6 July 2026, accepting two of the Committee’s recommendations, partially accepting three, and rejecting two.
• The Committee’s original report, setting out recommendations for improving the draft revised Ports NPS, was published in November 2025.
• The Government has confirmed that the final NPS for Ports will state clearly that the primary concern for port facilities is functionality, safety and minimising environmental impact.
• Following the Committee’s call for clearer wording on how ports interface with other freight modes, the text is being amended to draw out the importance of co-ordination with inland transport.
• Ruth Cadbury said ports handle 95% by volume of all goods entering and leaving Britain by sea, underlining their importance to the UK economy.
• The Committee said it wants the Government to continue driving towards a more streamlined and efficient planning process for port developments.
• Cadbury said she was encouraged that the Government recognises road and rail connections remain vital to ports, but said more could be done.
• The Transport Committee is now looking ahead to a promised new maritime strategy, which Ministers have said will be published in due course.

Westminster (Britain Today News) July 09, 2026 – The Chair of the House of Commons Transport Committee has commented on the Government’s response to its report on the National Policy Statement (NPS) for Ports, after Ministers accepted or partially accepted a majority of the Committee’s recommendations for reforming the planning framework that governs major port developments across England and Wales.

What Has The Transport Committee Said About The Government’s Ports Response?

The Transport Committee, the cross-party group of MPs responsible for scrutinising the Department for Transport and its associated bodies, has confirmed that it has reviewed the Government’s formal reply to its earlier report on the National Policy Statement for Ports. The Committee’s Chair, Ruth Cadbury, used the response as an opportunity to set out both what she regards as progress and where she believes further work is still required before the final version of the NPS for Ports is designated.

National Policy Statements set out the Government’s planning policy for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects, a category that includes major developments at ports around the country. These documents are legally binding guides that the Secretary of State must follow when deciding whether to grant development consent for large-scale port infrastructure, and they also help developers design projects that are likely to comply with planning regulations and wider policy objectives.

What Is The National Policy Statement For Ports?

The National Policy Statement for Ports sets the framework used by the Secretary of State when determining Development Consent Orders for nationally significant port infrastructure projects in England, alongside reserved trust ports in Wales. It also acts as a guide for developers, helping them to understand which considerations are likely to carry weight when new proposals are brought forward.

The current review is the first substantial update to the Ports NPS since it was originally designated in 2012, meaning the framework had not been refreshed for well over a decade before the present process began. The Government published its draft revised Ports NPS for consultation and scrutiny in June 2025, alongside the accompanying Habitats Regulation Assessment, arguing that the update reflected changes in circumstance and advances in policy since the original document was drawn up.

What Did The Transport Committee’s Report Recommend?

The Committee published its report with recommendations for how the Government could improve its draft revised NPS for ports in November 2025, following an inquiry that included written submissions and oral evidence sessions with witnesses including the Minister for Maritime and officials from the Department for Transport. The report set out a series of proposed changes intended to make the final NPS clearer, more resilient to legal challenge and better aligned with the Government’s wider transport and climate objectives.

Among the issues raised, the Committee pressed for clearer wording on how ports should interface with other freight modes, so that planning authorities are required to actively consider modal shift when assessing new development proposals. The Committee argued that this reflects the strategic role ports play in enabling integrated, lower-emission freight networks and supports the Government’s broader ambitions on modal shift and reaching net zero.

How Did The Government Respond To The Recommendations?

The Government published its response on 6 July 2026. Of the recommendations put forward by the Committee, two were accepted in full, a further three were partially accepted, and two were rejected. The response was laid before Parliament alongside the final proposed text of the amended National Policy Statement, which will now proceed through a prescribed consideration period before it can be formally designated.

In its response, the Government said it recognises that the primary concern for port facilities must be functionality, safety and minimising environmental impacts. This position will now be made clear in the final version of the NPS for Ports, addressing one of the central points raised by the Committee during its scrutiny of the draft document.

Will The NPS Reflect Concerns Over Freight Connectivity?

Yes. After the Committee called for the NPS for Ports to be reviewed to articulate more clearly how ports interface with other freight modes, the text is also being amended to draw out further the importance of co-ordination with inland transport modes. This is intended to ensure planning decisions take fuller account of how goods move to and from ports once they have been landed or are awaiting export.

What Did Ruth Cadbury Say About The Government’s Response?

Setting out her reaction to the Government’s response, Transport Committee Chair Ruth Cadbury said:

“Ports are the essential to the UK economy with 95% by volume of all goods entering and leaving Britain by sea. The Transport Committee shares the sector’s view that the Government should continue to drive towards a more streamlined, efficient planning process for port developments.

“Our report put forward recommendations to help achieve this and I was pleased to see Government accepting or partially accepting several of our recommendations.

“I’m encouraged that the Government recognises that road and rail connection will remain vital and that the primary concern for port facilities is that they must be functional, safe and must minimise environmental impacts. I now look forward to this being made clear in the final version of the NPS for Ports.

“However, Government can still do more to ensure we keep ports fit for the future. I hope that the new maritime strategy that Ministers have promised will be here soon with further steps forward.”

Why Are Ports Important To The UK Economy?

According to Cadbury’s own figures, ports handle 95% by volume of all goods entering and leaving Britain by sea, a scale that underlines why the framework governing their expansion is regarded as a significant piece of national infrastructure policy. Ports are directly linked to trade, energy development and regional economic growth, with the Government’s draft revised NPS built around supporting a significant increase in port capacity over the coming decades to accommodate rising trade volumes and expanding offshore energy activity.

Surface access to ports, meaning the road and rail connections that allow goods to move inland once they arrive, remains a central part of that picture. Historic analysis by the Department for Transport found that the large majority of domestic freight movements from ports are made by road, while a smaller but significant number of ports around the country also benefit from a direct rail connection. It is this balance between road, rail and coastal shipping that the Committee wants the revised NPS to address more explicitly.

What Changes Will Be Made To The Final NPS For Ports?

Two specific changes have been confirmed as a direct result of the Government’s response. First, the final NPS will state clearly that the primary concern for port facilities must be functionality, safety and minimising environmental impacts, addressing concerns that earlier drafts placed too much emphasis on design expectations that may not be realistic for a working industrial environment. Second, the text will be amended to draw out further the importance of co-ordination with inland transport modes, reflecting the Committee’s recommendation on freight interface.

Beyond these two confirmed changes, the Government partially accepted three further recommendations, meaning some elements of the Committee’s proposals have been taken forward while others have not been adopted in full. Two recommendations were rejected outright, though the detail of which specific proposals fall into each category was not set out in the material provided for this report.

How Does The Planning Process For Ports Work?

Under the Planning Act 2008, Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects, including major port developments, are directed into the Development Consent Order process, and National Policy Statements are the documents the Secretary of State is legally required to follow when reaching decisions on these applications. Once a revised NPS is laid before Parliament, it must undergo a prescribed consideration period before it can be formally designated and take effect, a process the Ports NPS is now progressing through following the Government’s response to the Committee.
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What Further Steps Is The Committee Calling For?

Despite welcoming the accepted and partially accepted recommendations, Cadbury made clear that the Committee believes the Government can still do more to ensure ports remain fit for the future. Central to this is the Committee’s hope that a new maritime strategy, which Ministers have previously promised, will be published soon and will set out further steps to support the sector.

The Committee’s position reflects a broader argument that has run through its scrutiny of the Ports NPS: that while the planning framework is an important foundation, it needs to sit alongside wider strategic commitments on investment, decarbonisation and connectivity if the UK is to keep pace with rising demand for port capacity in the years ahead.

What Happens Next For The National Policy Statement For Ports?

With the Government’s response now published and the final proposed text laid before Parliament, the amended National Policy Statement for Ports will proceed through its remaining statutory consideration period before it can be designated. The Transport Committee has indicated that it will continue to monitor progress, including whether the promised maritime strategy is published in the timeframe Ministers have suggested.

For now, the Committee’s message is one of qualified encouragement. Cadbury’s comments recognise genuine movement from Government on issues the Committee raised during its scrutiny of the draft NPS, particularly the clarification that port facilities should be judged first on functionality, safety and environmental impact, and the strengthened wording on inland transport co-ordination. At the same time, her comments make clear that the Committee sees this as one stage in an ongoing process, rather than the final word on how the UK plans for the future of its ports.