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The Dept for Transport has published the study, carried out by consultants, MDS Transmodal and DTZ Pieda, into the direct economic impact of light dues on shipping lines, ports and owners of fishing vessels and pleasure craft and on the wider UK economy.
In relation to imposing light dues on pleasure vessels of 20 net tons and under, the consultants developed a model based on a £100 annual charge levied on pleasure vessels of 8m or over. Since no one knows the number of pleasure craft in UK waters there is an element of guesswork involved in the model, but the consultants conclude:
The analysis ... suggests that the introduction of a charge of £100 for light dues on pleasure craft is unlikely to result in a reduction in the number of people owning pleasure craft in the UK. The main impact will be the result of reduced expenditure by boat owners as a result of a reduction in disposable income.
The consultants accept the imposition of light dues on pleasure vessels might produce some reduction in employment in the industry mainly in the South East and South West. The report does not address the question of how light dues might be recovered from pleasure craft but simply assumes collection costs would be sufficiently low for all (or most) of the money recovered to be available to the General Lighthouse Fund. The total raised under the Consultants' scenarios would be between £2.95 and £12 million.
The full reports and executive summaries are available from the DfT website.