Lloyd’s and NATO joint call

Lloyd’s chairman Lord Levene and Anders Fogh Rasmussen, secretary general of NATO have called for a “more systematic collaboration between government and business when it comes to managing risk”.

In a joint article on the Telegraph they write: “Piracy, cyber-security and climate change have business and political origins – tackling them effectively will mean a partnership between business and government.”

They point out that four ships are currently being held hostage and 79 people are being held for ransom.

More investment needed

The pair also call for more investment in research and in planning and in mitigating risks.

“Insurance cannot be seen as a substitute for effective risk management. It can, of course, be part of a businesses approach but if people want to build a home or factory on a fault line, or a flood plain, insurance is likely to cost them more. If they adapt their property to mitigate the danger, then this is likely to be reflected in the cost of insurance cover,” they write.

“Governments need to do some contingency planning as well; including focusing intelligence assessments on climate change, tasking military planners to incorporate it into their planning as well, and reinforcing all the facilities at risk from storms and floods. They also need to step up their cyber-defences, as NATO has done in creating a deployable cyber-defence capability that can help its members if they come under attack.”

Stronger collaboration

“We cannot, for the foreseeable future, stop the earth from getting warmer, or eliminate the root causes of piracy, or stop cyber-criminals from launching their botnets and malware. But we can minimise their effects – for industry, and for ordinary people. And the recipe is clear: better planning, wiser investment and stronger collaboration between business and government.”