The Marine Licensing (Application Fees) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

These Regulations amend the Marine Licensing (Application Fees) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2011 (S.R. 2011 No. 77) (2011 Fees Regulations). The 2011 Fees Regulations specify the fees that are to be applied for an application for a marine licence.

These Regulations (like the 2011 Fees Regulations) apply in relation to any area and any licensable marine activity taking place in that area, in relation to which the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs is the appropriate licensing authority by virtue of section 113(6)(b) of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.

The functions of the licensing authority formerly rested with the Department of the Environment which was dissolved by section 1(9) of the Departments Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 (c. 5 N.I.) and, by virtue of Article 8(1)(c) of the Departments (Transfer of Functions) Order (Northern Ireland) 2016 (S.R. 2016 No. 76), its functions for the purposes of this Order were transferred to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

Regulations 3 amends the Schedule to the 2011 Fees Regulations. Part 1 describes the fee tables and Part 2 lists the current fee tables and the applicable fees.

The structure of those fee tables and the value of the fees are revised as a result of these amending Regulations. All eight of the tables have had their specified fee values increased in line with the requirements of “Managing Public Money NI”.

Table 1 (Marine Construction Licence) has had three additional bands added. Two of those bands were added to enable small value projects to be regulated in a more proportionate manner. The third new band was added to reflect the higher values of large projects that now occur.

Table 2 (Maintenance Dredging Licence) has had four new bands added so that it now has seven fee bands which is the same as tables 3, 4 and 5.

Table 8 (Marine Renewable Energy Licence) has had the band widths in terms of generated wattage modified. Band three now applies from 10 Megawatts to 999.9 Megawatts. Band four now applies to 1.0 Gigawatt and above.

Guidance on the application of these Regulations can be obtained from the Marine Licensing Branch, Marine and Fisheries Division, Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Clare House, 303 Airport Road West, Belfast, BT3 9ED.

A full Regulatory Impact Assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the cost to business, the voluntary sector and the public sector is available from the Marine Licensing Branch.