Sometimes, it seems like business just can’t catch a break. My sector, logistics, has been particularly exposed to the rolling crises of the last few years. Each time, it has stepped up, adjusting to a complete overhaul of the terms of trade with the EU, and then responding rapidly to the Covid pandemic.  Companies in our industry had hoped for a calmer period after 2024’s General Election, but 2025 proved to be a tough year for many, with an uncertain economy not helped by the Budget that came late in the year. As 2026 started, things finally seemed to be looking up, with several members of the UK Warehousing Association I spoke to reporting their sites were busier and customers were feeling more confident.  But then came Iran.  Much of the focus on the fallout from the conflict has been on oil and gas prices, but the impact extends far beyond this. At the time of writing, over 100 container ships are stuck in the Persian Gulf, unable to get out through the Straits of Hormuz. This is on top of the fact that over 200 bulk carriers (transporting things like grain, sugar, cement and fertiliser) were also stuck.  The global logistics system is used to dealing with disruption. The container ship that was stuck in the Suez Canal, or the imposition of tariffs - the world has become accustomed to chaotic changes. Container shipping and air cargo costs are expected to go up as result of the situation in the Middle East, but the impact on supply chains will depend on how long it continues. It may have been manageable for the UK, but what concerns me is the situation facing our logistics sector before Trump launched the first air strikes.  Readers of Mace will likely have thought about business supply chains to some extent – the last few years have highlighted how dependent we are on imports of everything from food to computer chips. However, many may not have considered warehousing as a sector in its own right.  Such a sector should be considered, however. Over 650,000 people work in warehousing - far more than farming and a range of other prominent industries including publishing, insurance, and film and television. The sector contributes over £28bn to the economy, and occupies more commercial floorspace than all shops, offices and hospitality venues combined.  Two elements that should be positive, namely: how many people this sector employs and how many sites it operates. Yet, as a result of these factors, the sector has become a political 'soft target' as of late. Last year’s National Insurance rises, combined with higher minimum wages, have pushed up labour costs dramatically. Meanwhile, upcoming Business Rate increases have been specifically targeted at the warehouses of ‘online giants’ - whilst also penalising warehouses that serve high street shops too.  But this piece isn’t a complaint about one sector – there are plenty of others that could justifiably say they’ve had a tough time recently. It’s about how politicians understand the economy, and the weight they give to different parts of it. I mean no disrespect to the hard and important job that farmers do, but I want to give you an illustration. In the House of Commons last year, the word farm was mentioned 919 times. Warehouse? 42. Now, of course, you could say 2025 was a busy year for agriculture, politically-speaking, because of the row over Inheritance tax. But that actually proves the point I’m trying to make.  When the Government snuck out, just before Christmas, the announcement they were raising Inheritance Tax thresholds to exempt nearly all family farms, it contained a little-remarked piece of analysis. After the final tweaks, the Treasury estimates that 1,100 estates a year that receive agriculture or business property relief will pay more inheritance tax, of which only 185 get the agricultural relief. What does this mean? It means that the political noise may have been about farms, but the real policy impact is on other family businesses.  In the UKWA’s membership we have several third and even fourth generation companies. These are great businesses that plan for the long-term. They don’t want preferential treatment, but at the moment it feels like they are getting the opposite. Given that we import the majority of what we consume, warehouses also play a vital role in food security.   Mentions in Hansard are only an illustration, but you can see clear expressions of government preference through other means, not least the Industrial Strategy. There are varying opinions about any government’s ability to forecast the direction of economic development. It seems to me, given billions are spent on reliefs, grants and other business-related policies, that it makes sense to try to shape them towards an administration’s goals. As Eisenhower liked to say, “plans are worthless, but planning is everything." So there was much to welcome in the strategy, including the underlying analysis that the government had to improve “ease, sp...