VIEW FROM THE “CHAIR” Don Cockrill

October 25th, 2012 by JCB
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By the time that you read this, we will be but a few weeks away from the 21st IMPA conference hosted by the UKMPA in London.  If you have not yet booked your place for one or more days of the congress, you can still do so and take advantage of the special subsidised rates for UKMPA members.  Full details are on pages 2 & 3.

As you have seen from the contents of this issue, May this year saw many of us in Harrogate discussing a number of important matters regarding the future of our Association and learning from a selection of informative, erudite speakers of political, legal and technical developments that affect our daily lives.  For those that were unable to attend, the full papers, minutes and reports can be found in the members’ area of the UKMPA web site.

One issue that is still live is that of the UKMPA rules revision.  This is almost completed now and will hopefully be resolved by the end of the summer.  Once finalised, copies of the new rules will be sent out to all members.

The Conference was immediately followed by the EMPA football tournament (see page 15), hosted by the Liverpool Pilots whom I again wish to thank.  The event was a resounding success not least because of the hard work put into its organisation and topped off by our (UKMPA) team beating the Dutch team in their opening match.

All members should by now have received an e-newsletter containing important information about the latest (Sheryll Murray MP sponsored) Private Member’s Bill concerning another resurrection of the Marine Navigation Bill, the recently announced call for evidence by the Transport Select Committee and the necessity to make a submission to the EU ports Directive questionnaire on port services.  If you did not receive a copy of the Newsletter then please email:

Secretary@ukmpa.org and you will be sent one.

Several UKMPA member Pilots have made their mark over the last couple of months.  John Freestone (London) was installed as Master of the Honourable Company of Master Mariners and added to that by commanding the Royal Barge, Spirit of Chartwell for the Diamond Jubilee pageant. A number of other London pilot colleagues were also significantly involved in the complex organisation and running of the event.  In Industry, consultancy businesses from two of our districts have won or been nominated for prestigious industry awards  in recognition of  the specialist nature of the services they are providing.

On a lighter but important note for our younger colleagues in particular, your attention is drawn to the update on the “Mona Lisa” project, which is part of the EU Motorways of the Sea posted on the project website at:

www.sjofartsverket.se/en/MonaLisa .

The video on that website is well worth watching and I leave you to draw your own conclusions but what is worth noting is that the Project managers are former Swedish Pilots. Points to note are “proactive surveillance”, “dynamic separation of ships”, “know where ALL the ships are”, “need to change legislation – UNCLOS, STCW, SOLAS” and the overall cost of the project.

Finally, don’t forget that the UKMPA web site is updated frequently with industry news items and details of forthcoming events. Additionally, the UKMPA Linkedin site facilitates debate and discussion with fellow members on any issue you wish to raise.

Safe sailing, happy landings and best wishes for a dry end to the summer!

Don Cockrill