The UK government is quietly introducing a new carbon levy on maritime shipping, and the way it’s been structured is already drawing fierce criticism. A bombshell report from think tank Facts4EU, produced in collaboration with Stand for our Sovereignty and CIBUK.Org, reveals stark regional inequalities baked into the tax from the start.
The levy, being introduced via statutory instrument rather than full parliamentary debate, will affect ferries carrying passengers and goods across stretches of water within the United Kingdom itself. Critics say the method of introduction, bypassing the normal scrutiny of a Commons vote, has all the hallmarks of a tax imposed by stealth.
The timing is striking. The revelation comes just a day after Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a package of cost-of-living measures, as surging energy prices tied to the Middle East war continue to squeeze British households.
Scotland Gets a Free Pass, Weeks Before Holyrood Elections
Perhaps the most politically charged element of the new tax is who doesn’t have to pay it. According to the Facts4EU report, Scottish ferries (including those serving the Scottish islands) are entirely exempt from the levy. No Scottish routes will be required to pay at all.
The exemption arrives just weeks before elections to the new Holyrood Parliament, where 20 Labour MSPs face their electorates amid widespread dissatisfaction with the Westminster government. Baroness Kate Hoey, speaking to the People’s Channel, was direct about the optics: “I think people will draw their own conclusions when they see that Sir Keir has given Scotland a complete exemption, apparently without any great lobbying needed.”
Hoey contrasted that with Northern Ireland’s situation, pointing out that Labour holds 37 MPs in Scotland and not a single seat in Northern Ireland, a constituency the party doesn’t even stand candidates in. “It takes their money and gives them membership, but it will not put up candidates,” she said. “That is another discrimination by that party.”
Northern Ireland Bears the Brunt , And the Process Raises Red Flags
Unlike Scotland, Northern Ireland has no land border with the rest of the United Kingdom. It depends entirely on shipping for passengers and essential goods. According to the Facts4EU report, the tax rate for Northern Ireland has been halved (a 50% reduction) but critics argue this falls well short of genuine mitigation.
The backstory of how that concession came about is equally troubling. According to the report’s authors, the UK Government’s Northern Ireland Office was actively lobbying the Stormont committee to vote in favour of the levy, even as that committee appeared headed toward rejection. Officials allegedly promised to publish an impact assessment to buy time, but no such assessment exists or has been produced.
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Hilary Benn was reported to have personally texted party leaders over a weekend, warning that the entire EU reset could be jeopardised if the Assembly blocked the statutory instrument. Committee member Michelle McIlveen described what followed as “frankly, disgraceful,” telling the Assembly: “Last-minute pressure was placed on parties by the UK Government. A new dimension associated with CBAM [Carbon Border Mechanism Adjustment] and impact on EU negotiations was introduced. No facts, detail or proper briefing, just smoke and mirrors.”
Critics Call It an EU Alignment Tax in Disguise
The broader context behind the levy is the government’s ongoing EU reset, an effort to realign UK policy more closely with European frameworks. According to Conservative MP John Redwood, the shipping tax is essentially a preview of deeper economic pain to come. “This nasty shipping tax is a sample of the reset measures that will close more businesses, lose us more jobs and put up prices,” he told the People’s Channel, characterising it as “a warm-up to imposing deeply damaging wider EU carbon taxes and carbon tariffs.”
The Facts4EU report also highlights a striking statistic: Britain’s CO2 emissions account for just 0.9% of global output, raising pointed questions about the government’s cost-benefit analysis for a tax that will directly increase costs for consumers and businesses.
A spokesperson for the Department for Energy Security pushed back, stating that “pricing emissions is a cost-effective way to cut carbon and encourage greener travel,” and that bringing the maritime sector into the UK Emissions Trading Scheme was a joint decision with devolved governments. Consumers, the spokesperson added, “should not see any significant costs,” a claim the report’s authors and its parliamentary critics appear unlikely to accept at face value.
