The development of a European Port Policy is widely recognised as a critical component of the Common EU Transport Policy, and has been the focus of attention since the early 1990s.

A common EU wide port policy has not yet been achieved, but the authors of this book argue that it has a major role to play in European integration and that its significance in this context is set to increase. European Union Port Policy assesses the progress that has been made towards a comprehensive policy framework, reviewing the impact of both historical and contemporary policy initiatives – such as the recent ‘port package’ – before forecasting expected developments in policy making and the prospects of successfully achieving a single port policy.