Lighthouse tax

[Walnut]

BBC Radio 2 said this morning that the British government are considering charging owners of leisure craft over 8 meters long £100 per year to cover the cost of lighthouses and bouyage and that this cost is currently covered by commercial shipping.

It seems to me that the main reason for lighthouses and bouyage is to keep big ships from the hard stuff and each other. Owners of smaller boats gain great benefit from the system but the vast majority of it is not specifically for us.

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[cliff]

What next? report says small percentage increase in running costs won't stop people boating 2½~3½% so let them pay £100 for lights (which don't work and are often in the wrong place) O.K. so small increase then we have diesel and no matter whether you run a MoBo or a proper boat - ouch - there is more cost - small percentage? what comes next? a wind tax on yotties? Look here old man there were perfectly good winds for sailing so you have to pay a tax if you have a "proper" boat - ouch again - Where else can they tax us - rates on the boats good idea - I mean you have heads, a sink, a cooker, bunks, portholes, lights, etc why not tax them as well? Now there is a good idea let's have a bunk tax - Oh Gordon.... Gordon.... GORDON! new idea to get more money out of the peasants and lets slap a surcharge on their insurance as well I mean an average increase of £100 to meet third party claims because we changed the sodding law over resticting claim amounts is not good enough is it? - Let's slap a 100% excess tax on all leisure marine policies.

Gotta find more ways to shaft the "rich bastards" with boats Gotta find, gotta find......

We deserve everything we get for sitting on our asses and letting GB and Co shaft us but there will always be some rich plonkers who will pay up. Me? I think I'll sell up - any room over there in Canada?

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[Aeolus_IV]

Watch out, "port hole tax" will be next on the books...

Jeff.

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://users.swing.be/FDB/centurion/index2.html>Centurion 32 Web site</A>

 

[cliff]

No, No I think the berth tax will be next either that or rates - second home and all that - What could GB & Co. get for that? £2000 / year / boat?

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[Andrew_Fanner]

GB would get a lot of boats up for sale, maybe one or two "dumped" in his garden and no votes from the afloat community.

But has he spotted that one?

<hr width=100% size=1>Two beers please, my friend is paying.

 

[CJU]

If we do get taxed on red diesel where will the collected tax go, could it be used to pay our share of the lighthouse dues?

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[philip_stevens]

Don't kid yourself - he'll come up with another tax.

<hr width=100% size=1>regards,
Philip

 

[sailorman]

Re: porthole tax

Im bricking mine up

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[the_wanderer]

Wouldn't be so bad if all the increased taxes weren't spent on the great unwashed and similar L***y B******s and all the rest of the dross we have to keep.

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[Brian_B]

How will this work?
How do you identify who pays for lights and buoys?
If I take my 40 foot Dragon Boat racing once a year on the sea do I pay the same as a 40 foot sail boat used every week of the year?
Would I have to pay for lights in Scotland if I only sail in Plymouth?
What if I only sail during the day?

We already pay VAT on everything we use, we also pay tax on fuel and additional tax on insurance. Did I mention that most of us pay Income Tax for Capital Gains?

In other words we already pay for light and buoys. We all pay through the existing tax system even if we don't use them just like schools, hospitals, etc.

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[dulcibella]

Nothing like a suggestion of a bit of tax to get the real backwoodsmen going, is there?

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[mirabriani]

Looking back, succesive goverments have almost wiped out our fishing fleet. Hit farmers for six. Nearly suceeded in banning hunting. Whalloped the motor industry. Soaked the vehicle driver. IMHO only the ramblers have seemed to advanced their cause. I am looking into fitting myself with a mast, sail and roller skates and sailing free. Might raise a smile too.
Briani

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