The UK Government adopts National Maritime Safety Strategy

5-year strategy targets the latest physical and cyber threats

As well as the Maritime Safety Strategy issued on the same day, it involves the Department for Transport, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development, Home Office and Ministry of Defence.

The new Maritime Security Strategy sets out how the UK will improve its capabilities in technology, innovation and cyber security. The 5-year strategy will formally recognise environmental damage as a maritime security issue to tackle modern problems such as illegal fishing and polluting practices.

The UK's position as a world-leading maritime nation will be secured through a new strategy that will improve capabilities in the areas of technology, innovation and cyber security.

Launching the 5-year strategy on Monday 15 August 2022, the UK Transport Secretary set out the guiding principles for the UK Government's approach to tackling threats and risks at home and around the world, including using the UK's world-leading seabed mapping and tackling illegal fishing and pollution at sea.

The new strategy redefines maritime security as compliance with laws, regulations and standards to create a free, fair and open maritime space. With this new approach, the government rightly recognises any illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and environmental damage in our seas as a maritime security issue.

To improve the UK's knowledge of maritime security, the Government has also established the UK Centre for Seabed Mapping (UK CSM) to enable the UK's world-leading seabed mapping sector to work together to collect more and better data.

Read the entire strategy here