Recent rows over the Port’s future should come to an end according to Sarah Smith, the Liberal Democrat’s parliamentary candidate for Dover and Deal.

Mrs Smith said: “It’s time to put the interests of Dover at its people first.”

“The Harbour Board is doing a good job, recently posting its best traffic figures since 2009, but what is needed now is a structure that guarantees the Port’s management team stays accountable to local needs, and gives the Harbour Board access to capital investment so it can compete successfully with other ports in the UK and Europe.”

Sarah Smith, who is a former advisor with the Financial Services Authority, says there is no benefit in handing over the port to private owners.

“The Port is too important to Dover to be sold off with no thought about the effect on the town, its regeneration or local employment, all issues at the heart of my campaign”.

Charlie Elphicke’s People’s Port Trust has refused the Dover Harbour Board’s offer to work with local stakeholders through the Port and Community Forum to discuss the Port’s future. Sarah Smith believes that needs to change.

She added: “Dover people voted against privatisation and for more local say.

“For me, the way forward is shared ownership – a joint venture between local authority, state and private enterprise that makes local influence democratic.

“It’s been shown to be the most effective method of managing a port for the wider benefit of the country, working very well for successful ports such as Rotterdam, Antwerp and Hamburg.

“It can be a good model for us here in Dover.”
“I think if people had been offered this option in the 2011 referendum, results might have been substantially different.

“It’s time to find a practical way to deliver what the people of Dover want and start acting on it.”