‘Rocking the boat’: the disgrace of P&O Ferries

Stern action is needed to counter companies who believe breaking the law is justifiable

An RMT union protest in Dover
An RMT union protest in Dover
(Image credit: Andrew Aitchison/In pictures via Getty Images)

“What does a chief executive have to do to get fired these days,” asked Oliver Shah in The Sunday Times. Peter Hebblethwaite, boss of P&O Ferries, appears to be doing “his damnedest”. He finally admitted before a committee of MPs last week that the company had been legally required to consult unions before laying off 800 seafarers – but “chose not to do so”, and would do the same again. No union, he said by way of justification, could “possibly accept” those mass redundancies. For most corporate leaders, such blatant flouting of the law would be “terminal”. But Hebblethwaite apparently continues to enjoy the support of P&O’s Dubai parent company DP World. And why not? So long as he remains “a convenient human sponge, soaking up outrage”, he remains useful. After that, he too will be tossed aside. If you want to see who’s really responsible, look beyond P&O’s “captain calamity” to his “overlord”, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem.

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