It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship for, I believe, the first time, Ms Ghani—a very great honour. I congratulate Kenny MacAskill on securing the debate, although I take issue with the rather gloomy picture he paints of ports and the wider maritime sector in Scotland. I shall address why I take a different view in a moment.

Ports are the heartbeat of our global goods exports. We expect that global maritime trade volumes could treble by 2050 and we will be ready to play our part, including by reforming our ports regulations to ensure we support our ports to continue to grow and excel in a competitive global environment. The economic opportunities in the maritime sector are huge, including driving up exports and creating high-paying jobs across the country, with specific benefit to coastal communities.

The goal is for the UK to cement its already strong position and thrive as a world-leading maritime nation at the cutting edge of technology, innovation and maritime services, underpinned by effective, responsive and best-in-class regulation. Our policies on levelling up, building back better and our transition to net zero are crucial to gain the economic benefits for our ports and increase the prosperity of our country. Those policies provide successful examples of the engagement between the Government and the private sector. It is encouraging to see how successful Scottish businesses, ports and academic institutions have been in the recent clean maritime demonstration competition—a clear signal of Scotland’s drive and ambition to innovate.

I do not accept the hon. Gentleman’s assertion that there is somehow a conflict of interest in the owners of Forth and Clyde ports also owning other ports in the UK. One thing we are keen to see is the extension of—a very difficult phrase to say—short sea shipping. Do not say that in a hurry.