Ausmarine editorial - February 2009

I refer readers to Dick Lee's analysis of the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) and its many problems which commences on page 17 [Ausmarine February 2009].

Dick summarises the AFMA situation very well. He is, though, rather more generous to AFMA than I would have been. He suggests that AFMA could be cured with an infusion of new blood. I believe, contrarily, that AFMA is doomed and should be put out of its misery immediately.

While I largely agreed with the original concept for AFMA, it has since departed dramatically from that. Its guiding philosophy was originally one of sustainable fishing industry development. This has since been corrupted to one of sustained fishing industry destruction.

Work Boat World, Ships and Shipping editorial - January 2009

In December 2007 I wrote of “The coming shipbuilding bust?” I don’t want to sound like a smart Alec but I was very largely correct in my predictions even if a tad early.

This is being written in late November 2008 when much of the developed world is still very much in Global Financial Crisis (GFC) “meltdown” mode. It is going to take a while for us to recover from this psychological, if not actually economic, depression.

It seems remarkable to me that so many, even experienced, hands, in the global maritime industry have been surprised by this turn of events. The far-sighted were not surprised. I well remember talking with a leading Hong Kong shipowner in November 2007. His advice was “sell everything”. I believe he largely followed his own advice and is now very nicely cashed up.