#GreenDiesel - Ireland is set to be hauled before the courts by the European Union over failure to legislate against the use of 'green' diesel by private yachts.
According to Yacht & Boating World, the European Commission is referring Ireland to the Court of Justice of the European Union for not applying the rules on fiscal marking of fuel.
Two years ago Brussels began a crackdown on the use of marked or dyed diesel, which is taxed at a reduced rate for agricultural use including commercial fishing, and threatened to levy fines against British leisure boats using such fuel beyond UK waters.
In July the UK was referred to the same court over its own non-enforcement of the EU rules, despite arguments from the British marine industry that unmarked - or 'white' - diesel is not widely available in UK ports.
As in Britain, Irish law requires private boat owners to pay the difference between the standard rate of tax on diesel and the reduced marked fuel rate.
However, in a statement, the European Commission claims that "the low number of tax returns indicate that the minimum level of taxation is not applied."
Yacht & Boating World has more on the story HERE.
