| Abstract: | Following the introduction of tonnage tax for UK-based shipping companies in 2000, the industry now has the opportunity to opt for a tax regime that is beneficial in contrast to the corporation tax applied to most other sectors. This paper aims to summarize the tonnage tax scheme and then to go on to assess whether its introduction was appropriate. In doing so, it assesses whether the benefits it brings to the UK shipping industry are in fact fiscally justifiable in terms of the advantages that have been suggested recently by a number of commentators. These are claimed to derive from the comparative advantage of the UK shipping industry, the need for more skilled on-shore shipping staff with sea-going experience, and in terms of sustaining the maritime cluster typified by the maritime activities of the City of London. |
