SHIPPING
Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the size of the British merchant fleet was in each of the last 15 years for which figures are available.
Mr John Hayes, Minister of State for Transport: Trading vessels are registered to the United Kingdom (UK) rather than Great Britain.
The size of the UK fleet can be measured in several different ways. International law requires that every merchant ship be registered in a country. The UK fleet is typically understood to be vessels that are registered in the UK (‘UK registered’).
UK registered trading vessels of 100 gross tons and over: 1999 – 2013
| UK fleet | Count | Gross tonnage (000s) | Deadweight tonnage (000s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 379 | 3,200 | 2,740 |
| 2000 | 417 | 4,579 | 3,757 |
| 2001 | 427 | 5,035 | 4,269 |
| 2002 | 497 | 7,114 | 6,686 |
| 2003 | 587 | 9,971 | 9,830 |
| 2004 | 597 | 10,250 | 10,521 |
| 2005 | 608 | 10,911 | 11,591 |
| 2006 | 629 | 11,536 | 12,346 |
| 2007 | 646 | 12,532 | 13,012 |
| 2008 | 675 | 14,164 | 15,009 |
| 2009 | 701 | 16,405 | 17,303 |
| 2009 | 712 | 16,409 | 17,303 |
| 2010 | 664 | 16,112 | 16,646 |
| 2011 | 643 | 16,636 | 17,740 |
| 2012 | 577 | 16,246 | 17,608 |
| 2013 | 500 | 13,615 | 15,192 |
Source: Department for Transport analysis of IHS Global data
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