Maritime bosses warn ‘nonsensical’ measures could sink the British fishing industry overnight
Gareth Corfield Transport Correspondent. Hassan Akram28 March 2025 7:36pm GMT
Labour is implementing stricter net zero measures on fishing boats, canal barges and pleasure craft, The Telegraph can reveal.
Under the maritime decarbonisation strategy, boat owners will be forced to swap out diesel engines, petrol generators and wood-fired stoves for electric motors, batteries and extra shore power hookups.
There will also be tax rises on marine fuel, with new boats required to be entirely electric.
Maritime bosses branded the Government’s plans “completely and utterly impractical”.
Richard Gregson, the owner of Worcester-based Classic Yacht Brokerage, said: “It’s complete nonsense to have net zero on yachts.
“The technology for electric engines on small boats isn’t really there. The amount of diesel a yacht burns in a year is negligible, and even if the diesel engines were replaced it would be offset by the making of electric batteries.”
‘It’s not going to be easy’
Jerry Percy, the chief executive of the New Under Ten Fishermen’s Association, representing operators of craft less than 10 metres in length, said that adding emissions taxes to fuel for Britain’s fishing boats would “destroy the industry overnight”.“At the moment we get a subsidy on diesel for fishing vessels; we pay less than you pay for it at the pumps. If they even remove that subsidy… three quarters of the fleet would go bankrupt,” he said.
Speaking about proposals to force fishing boats to go electric, he added: “It’s going to take some persuasion for companies to build port infrastructure for what is a relatively small number of vessels … I think we need to transition, but it’s not going to be easy”.
Peter Braybrook, the secretary of the National Association of Boat Owners, cautioned that replacing diesel engines and generators on canal boats would be impractical.
“The major problem is charging them on most canal boats, which are about seven foot wide and 60 foot long,” he said.
He added that the available space was not enough to install solar panels capable of charging boats for more than six hours’ operation.
Mr Braybrook warned the net zero measures could trigger a wave of homelessness, as people who lived on canal boats because of the high cost of housing would be unable to afford an enforced switch to electric power.
“No way they could do it,” said Mr Braybrook. “They’d be forced off the water, off their off-grid lifestyle, and probably into homelessness.”
The National Association of Boat Owners warned that many marinas and yards would struggle afford the installation costs of extra shore power points for electric boats.
Lack of high-quality data
It comes after the car industry spent £4.5 billion last year trying to comply with similar net zero policies that have been linked to factory closures and thousands of job losses. Ministers signalled that those plans would be watered down because of the problems caused.Ministers hope to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the shipping sector in line with “the highest end of the International Maritime Organisation’s targets” of a 30 per cent reduction by 2030 – achieving net zero by 2050.
All ships and boats below 400 gross registered tons will have to comply with the measures.
In the document, published the day before Rachel Reeves’s Spring Statement, the Government said: “Due to the diversity of the fleet of vessels below 400 GT and the variable nature of their operations (both technically and commercially), it is likely that a range of different interventions will need to be implemented throughout the late 2020s and early 2030s to address their emissions – and it is possible that in some instances, workable solutions may not be identified.”
Government statistics show international shipping accounted for just 6 per cent of Britain’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2022, the latest year for which data are available.
Officials admitted that no accurate estimates for small vessels’ emissions were available “in part due to the lack of high-quality data available on their operations”.
‘Punishing people and businesses’
Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, who during her time as business secretary introduced the automotive sector’s zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate, announced earlier this month that the target of reaching net zero by 2050 was “impossible”.Andrew Bowie MP, the Conservative shadow energy secretary, said: “As Kemi Badenoch has said, net zero by 2050 is impossible. This is yet another example of Ed Miliband punishing people and businesses in the UK in pursuit of his eco zealotry.
“The Conservatives are under new leadership, and will tell the truth about net zero and always put our national interest first,” he added.
A Department for Transport spokesman said: “Smaller vessels like canal boats will not face emissions pricing or fuel regulations, as our focus remains on larger ships. We are engaging with the sector to better understand the challenges that smaller vessels face and how we can support them to reduce emissions.
“The Government is committed to decarbonising the shipping industry as part of our mission to tackle climate change and establish the UK as a clean energy superpower.”
Source (Archive)
