LONDON - Lord John Prescott, who previously served as Deputy Prime Minister, will join the top level line-up of speakers at a major conference being held next month, as part of the International Business Festival.

The Northern Maritime Powerhouse, digitalisation in ports, coastal shipping and the importance of maritime clusters will be debated by Lord Prescott and other high-profile speakers at the International Maritime Forum on June 21st.

Lord Prescott served as the Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and The Regions from 1997 to 2010.

The International Maritime Forum, organised by Shipping Innovation, creator of London International Shipping Week, is designed to spark lively debate among key ports, shippers and supply chain leaders.

The conference, which will be titled: The Northern Maritime Powerhouse: Driving global trade post-Brexit, will look at how digitalisation and increased connectivity can enhance processes and drive innovation to boost global trade. It will also discuss blockchain technologies and Big Data in the context of streamlining shipping and port operations to the lasting benefit of the end-users as well as the importers and exporters.

A key session during the day will focus on why maritime clusters have become so important, and will include presentations from Dick Welsh, Director at the Isle of Man Registry; Chris Shirling-Rooke, CEO, Mersey Maritime; Mark O’ Reily, CEO & Chairman of Team Humber Marine Alliance and Colin Lavelle, Legal Director at Hill Dickinson Liverpool.

Tickets are £125 which includes a light lunch and refreshments. They also include a complimentary festival pass which provides access to all nine days of the International Business Festival.