Red Diesel fiasco - what's the latest?

what a lot of tosh is being written here. The principal is simple, those who use the roads pay for their maintenance and upkeep. Those costs were passed to motorists by excise duty. As those that use equipment on farms, boats or domestic heating do not not use the roads their diesel was not taxed. At some point either the late 70's or early 80's governments started to raise more in taxes from road users then they actually spent on roads and they felt it was politically expedient to do so because it kept the headline rate of income tax down. The problem with this policy is it spread to other areas, so now we have ad-hoc taxes that exist for no other reason than they can like air-passanger duty and worst of all stepped stamp duty on housing.

The EU is controlled by the socialist majority who are authoritarian by nature and have now decreed that boats should pay the same tax as cars, it is tax and spend socialism. There is no logic to this position, boat users really don't use the roads. I should be free to spend my money on diesel as much as I am to buy books, clothes or cameras. Why should the government decide to add 500% tax to diesel whilst those who chose to spend their money on Salmon fishing pay no such tax,we could add 500% to PPV TV subscriptions or books, would that be OK? No so why do some here think it is OK for boats?

The reason is like non-boaties that don't care about principles. Yes as a yachtsman I don't spend a lot on fuel, but If I had a motor boat it would be killing. Well I do care, lots of motorboat owners have been impoverished by the imposition of tax, they have either lost a packet on the capital value of their boats or they have lost the enjoyment because the sheer cost of the fuel. In addition look at the lost business for the boat builders in the country, we are the nations that builds Sunseekers, Princess, Sealine and Fairline yachts to name but a few, I do not believe that our strength in this area is unrelated to our historically low cost fuel.
 
Seven Spades said:
what a lot of tosh is being written here. The principal is simple, those who use the roads pay for their maintenance and upkeep. Those costs were passed to motorists by excise duty. As those that use equipment on farms, boats or domestic heating do not not use the roads their diesel was not taxed. At some point either the late 70's or early 80's governments started to raise more in taxes from road users then they actually spent on roads and they felt it was politically expedient to do so because it kept the headline rate of income tax down. The problem with this policy is it spread to other areas, so now we have ad-hoc taxes that exist for no other reason than they can like air-passanger duty and worst of all stepped stamp duty on housing.

The EU is controlled by the socialist majority who are authoritarian by nature and have now decreed that boats should pay the same tax as cars, it is tax and spend socialism. There is no logic to this position, boat users really don't use the roads. I should be free to spend my money on diesel as much as I am to buy books, clothes or cameras. Why should the government decide to add 500% tax to diesel whilst those who chose to spend their money on Salmon fishing pay no such tax,we could add 500% to PPV TV subscriptions or books, would that be OK? No so why do some here think it is OK for boats?

The reason is like non-boaties that don't care about principles. Yes as a yachtsman I don't spend a lot on fuel, but If I had a motor boat it would be killing. Well I do care, lots of motorboat owners have been impoverished by the imposition of tax, they have either lost a packet on the capital value of their boats or they have lost the enjoyment because the sheer cost of the fuel. In addition look at the lost business for the boat builders in the country, we are the nations that builds Sunseekers, Princess, Sealine and Fairline yachts to name but a few, I do not believe that our strength in this area is unrelated to our historically low cost fuel.
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I don't think there's any "tosh" being written here and I'm sure most of us would agree with your sentiments. Someone asked a question and others answered it with true statements of current EU law - the fact that you disagree with that EU law doesn't make the statements tosh.
 
Well, how's about this.

HMG will refund any legitimate marina/boatyard business the entire cost of installing a dual tank system, and recoup the cost by withholding the same amount from the annual EU subscription, thereby easily complying with all relevant legislation from Brussels, safeguarding the growing marine industry sector, and providing a much needed stimulus in hard economic times, preventing an increase in layoffs. The howls of protest from the EU will be drowned in the amount of extra VAT paid on fuel by the leisure marine sector in the following five years.
Sorted.

Or was that just too simple?
 
grumpy_o_g said:
A bunch of posts which show just how brainwashed you've all become. Britain has system and the system works perfectly well.The system has negligible impact on any country outside the UK, and has been in place for years.

Nothing is broken yet a bunch of freeloaders trying to justify their pointless jobs expect us to pay a fortune to install duplicate tanks, etc., to achieve compliance with an arbitrary set of rules they've dreamed that have no benefit to anyone. The whole thing is typical of the unnecessary garbage foisted on us all the time by all politicians but especially the EU. Hopefully the government will tell them to buggar off in no uncertain terms and it will be yet another nail in coffin for this group of parasitic nasties.
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Oh dear - are we being divided and conquered? Well said Grumpy! I can't believe the amount of people on the forum who seem to WANT to pay more for their diesel. This is our country, our law and our own taxation system. I see no reason why a bunch of unelected crats in Brussels should have the right to get all litigious about something which, after all, is less than a drop in the ocean to them. Our sport/hobby is expensive enough without false taxes being imposed. Not a UKIP supporter but this just plays into the hands of the 'out' campaign.
 
maby said:
The EU directives do not specify tax levels, but they do specify what classes of user can have access to reduced tax fuel. The UK government could slash fuel taxes for everyone and not get into trouble with the EU, but the directives do not permit the sale of reduced tax fuel to leisure sailors - we are required to pay tax at the same rate as users of private cars. I'm sure plenty of people would support an across the board reduction in fuel taxes, but the government finances would not support it.
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Yes.. this isnt anything to do with EU/boats per se.. it is to do with minimal permissible tax levels by usage.
So, you could have a propulsion tank at full tax in your boat and a non propulsion tank at the reduced rates and the EU would, supposedly,be happy. Not very practical though.
 
Seven Spades said:
what a lot of tosh is being written here. The principal is simple, those who use the roads pay for their maintenance and upkeep. Those costs were passed to motorists by excise duty. As those that use equipment on farms,do not use the roads
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They might not use the roads where you live but try getting to work quickly where i live.
D...d tractors everywhere
 
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