The South Coast should be marketed as Europe's leading business location for the marine industry.

That was the conclusion of a major conference hosted by the South-East England Development Agency (SEEDA).

The main purpose of Marine South-East was to identify the key issues facing the marine industry, from planning constraints and environmental regulations to education and training.

Martin Jay, chief executive of shipbuilder Vosper Thorneycroft and head of SEEDA's Marine Industries Taskforce, said the region had a strong and well established cluster of marine businesses, giving it an in-built advantage over other UK and European regions.

He said: "We must position the South-East as the key region in Europe for the marine industry.

"We already have a lot of industry expertise and a huge and diverse range of marine businesses, from shipbuilders to chandlers. There is a golden opportunity for the South-East to attract inward investment and to help stimulate the growth of home-grown businesses."

He said the conference was intended to be the first in a series of annual events organised by SEEDA as a catalyst for knowledge-sharing and problem-solving for the marine sector.

He said: "It is clear there are many common problems facing the industry, not least the skills shortage that is critical to the whole marine sector."

Director of SEEDA's business and international division, Marianne Neville-Roffe, said there must be a hard-headed, practical approach to building up the marine industry In the South-East.

She said: "This conference will help us prioritise our actions on behalf of the region's marine industry.

"SEEDA can bring resources to bear and lever other investment from the Government and the private sector to address key issues such as bridging the skills gap and facilitating technology transfer from universities and colleges."