Port governance

Ports in Scotland vary in size from large commercial operations to small slips and piers. They include privately owned ports, local authority ports and harbours and trust ports.

Trust ports

A trust port is an independent statutory body governed by its own local legislation and run by independent boards. Unlike private company ports, they have no shareholders so all the surpluses from port operations are put back into the port.

Scottish Ministers consulted with the industry in preparing their guidance for Scottish trust ports which was published in 2012 as Modern Trust Ports in Scotland.