UK Shipping Minister, Stephen Ladyman announced on Monday that there will be no increase this year in light dues paid by merchant ships and fishing vessels. The tonnage threshold of 35,000 tons will also remain the same.
Light dues are a system of user charges levied on all commercial shipping vessels which call at UK and Republic of Ireland ports.
In the UK, the provision and maintenance of aids to navigation - such as lighthouses, buoys and beacons - fall to the General Lighthouse Authorities (GLAs), namely Trinity House Lighthouse Service, the Northern Lighthouse Board and the Commissioners of Irish Lights. Their costs are funded solely from the collection of light dues.
Commenting on the charges, Dr Ladyman stated:
"I am pleased that light dues rates and the tonnage threshold will remain the same for 2007/08. It is a tribute to the continuing efficiency gains of the GLAs that rates have not increased in 14 years."
He added
"Last year light dues were cut by 4p per ton, representing a 10% reduction. I welcomed the industry's assurance at that time that they recognised that rates could rise in the future should the General Lighthouse Fund not be able to meet the cost of essential capital projects."
In 2006, rates were reduced from 39p to 35p per ton. The tonnage ceiling is 35,000 tons making the maximum charge GBP12,250. In any year, a vessel is not required to pay light dues for more than seven voyages in total.
.
Network Tweets
Network BlogsContent
provided by
|
Archive | Resources | Partners | Site Map | Links | Newsletter Archive | Contact | RSS Feeds | About | Syndication | Advertising & Marketing | Recruitment | Terms & Conditions | Privacy & Cookies
Copyright © 2012 - All Rights Reserved - Tax-News.com
IMPORTANT NOTICE: Tax-News.com has taken reasonable care in sourcing and presenting the information contained on this site, but accepts no responsibility for any financial or other loss or damage that may result from its use. In particular, users of the site are advised to take appropriate professional advice before committing themselves to involvement in offshore jurisdictions, offshore trusts or offshore investments.
Write a comment