Kicking off the proceedings, the Princess Royal gave an impassioned endorsement for the charity Mission to Seafarers, of which she is president. “The thing that affects [crew] the most… is principally the time they spend away from home, and the desire to spend a little bit of time ashore with somebody else in a safe environment.”
“It’s nice to meet the people who volunteer for them, and to support them, and those of you who are here tonight clearly do that. These awards are very important to seafarers – in many respects all of them impact on their lives and their welfare.”
The Princess Royal also spoke of the importance of “encouraging young people to recognise the maritime sector as a really exciting career.”
After proceedings were invigorated by a combination of Webb’s amusing recollections from his reportage on the royal family, and staff who did not hold back in the refilling of wine glasses, the awards were announced.
This writer in particular was delighted that IMO’s Koji Sekimizu chose the Seatrade platform to acknowledge recent rancour in the industry, surrounding the Ballast Water Management Convention. “In my view the government has recognised issues raised by the shipping industry,” said Sekimizu. “But I understand the shipping industry will provide significant proposals before the next MEPC. I am really looking forward to following this innovation, and am keen to implement it within IMO.”
Henrik O Madsen, president and ceo of DNV GL and winner of Seatrade’s prestigious lifetime achievement award said: “I was really impressed with the whole evening and think the Seatrade team deserves a big pat on the back for organizing another great event. It is a credit to all those involved, and very much in line with the Seatrade symbol of excellence.” And we even write news articles, too.
Henrik Madsen and Graham Westgarth