The UK supply chain community needs the support of a Government that not only understands the problems that it faces but, more importantly, is prepared to take appropriate steps to help solve them

That will be the message Peter Ward, CEO of the United Kingdom Warehousing Association (UKWA), delivers to the MPs, Ministers and Civil Servants who, together with senior executives representing some of the UK’s leading logistics service providers and their customers, will gather for UKWA’s annual House of Lords networking luncheon in March.

“British society is in the midst of a period of rapid and wide-ranging change and many of the decisions taken at Westminster during 2016 are likely to have a clear and lasting impact on the UK’s future logistics and transportation landscapes,” says Peter Ward.

He continues: “The number of people living in the UK will rise from 64.6 million in mid-2014 to 74.3 million by 2039. That’s an increase of almost 10 million in 25 years.

“Because these people will need to be fed and clothed, the Government has to act to not only ensure that our road and rail infrastructure can sustain the physical movement of goods at the kind of levels that will be required, but that enough warehouses and distribution centres are built in parts of the country where they will be able to serve our rapidly expanding communities.

“The efficient operation of the logistics and supply chain sector has always been essential to the performance of the British economy and UKWA is striving to sway Government thinking by highlighting the central importance of our industry and the companies that operate within it, to the smooth running of ‘UK plc’.”

The United Kingdom Warehousing Association represents some 700 companies in the UK logistics industry.

Attendance at the UKWA House of Lords networking lunch (in partnership with Zetes) is free but places are strictly limited and are allocated on a ‘first-come, first-served’ basis so, if you would like further information on how to register your interest in securing a place at the event, please contact UKWA’s Sue Knief either by telephone on 0207 636 8856 or by email at Sue@ukwa.org.uk