Drivers urge Rishi Sunak to slash fuel duty by 20p as prices soar to £2 a litre
DRIVERS’ groups last night urged Rishi Sunak to slash fuel duty by 20p as a tank of petrol hit £100 for the first time — with many petrol stations charging £2 or more a litre.
MPs want the Chancellor to act now as figures revealed the Treasury was raking in a record amount because of soaring VAT, dubbed by some a “wind-fuel tax”.
It came as it emerged many employees are having to go sick because they cannot afford the fuel to drive to work while others are going hungry to pay for petrol.
Writing in The Sun today, senior Tory MP Robert Halfon states: “Prices have gone up so astronomically that more needs to be done.
“The Chancellor must make another significant cut in fuel duty — anywhere between ten and 20 pence — at least temporarily while this crisis is going on.”
The average litre price of petrol hit 182.3p yesterday while diesel was 188.1p. It put the cost of filling up a 55-litre family car at £100.27.
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But £45.79 of that goes straight into Government coffers.
Despite lopping 5p off fuel duty in March, the Treasury is taking in more than ever due to the 20 per cent VAT slapped on top. Yesterday, it accounted for 30.3p per litre on top of the 52.95p duty.
The RAC called it a “truly dark day” for drivers while the AA demanded a 10p cut in duty.
Tory MP Craig Mackinlay said: “The Chancellor crowed about how he slashed motorist costs by £5billion when he cut fuel duty.
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‘DIESEL PRICES FORCE ME TO TURN DOWN WORK’
White Van Man
VAN driver Dave Todd is forced to turn down work because he cannot afford the diesel.
He said: “I have a two-litre van big enough to do house clearances.
“But it costs £140 to fill up. I spend £250 a week on diesel.”
The White Van Man, 36, of Billingham, Co Durham, added: “I turned down a job not far away yesterday because it wasn’t worth taking once the fuel cost was deducted
“I’m having to stick closer and closer to home.”
“Now he’s making more than ever we’ve got to get that money back out to motorists, either with a 10p fuel duty cut or a cut in VAT.
“Whichever works to give a boost to Britain’s hard-up drivers.”
FairFuelUK urged: “Wake up and smell the coffee, Rishi. Drivers are being crippled by unchecked, sky-rocketing pump prices.”
The PM accused petrol providers of “profiteering” and failing to pass on the 5p a litre fuel duty cut announced in March.
Boris Johnson said retailers were being watched to ensure they did so.
Downing Street indicated on Wednesday that those failing to pass on the reduction could be named and shamed.
Mr Johnson insisted that he was on the side of drivers and hinted a further duty cut may come soon.
He said: “What I want to see is those cuts in taxation not just swallowed up in one gulp, without touching the gullet of the fuel companies,
"I want to see those cuts having an impact at pumps. We’re watching very closely to see what happens.”
The PM added that many companies have a sense of responsibility and do not just want to take profit. He went on: “We need to see it.”
Industry chiefs, however, claimed it was the Government which was on the take.
Alasdair Locke, of the Motor Fuel Group, said: “In mid-February, before the Chancellor reduced his duty, the Government was getting about 83p a litre, which was a combination of VAT and duty.
What I want to see is those cuts in taxation not just swallowed up in one gulp, without touching the gullet of the fuel companies, I want to see those cuts having an impact at pumps. We’re watching very closely to see what happens.
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“Two days ago, on the average price at the pump, the Government was earning 84p.
“Duty had gone down but the VAT had gone up because the price of fuel had gone up and VAT is charged on the wholesale price of fuel.”
The AA said fuel costs were forcing some hard-up Brits to sell cars or go hungry to pay for fuel.
Boss Edmund King told BBC Radio 4’s World At One programme: “We did a survey of 15,000 drivers and two per cent of those on low incomes are actually having to give up their cars.
“Twenty-seven per cent on low incomes are actually having to cut back on their food bills. Because they live in rural areas, they need their car to get to work and there is no public transport.”
He added that the “whole economy is suffering as a result”. Mr King also called for a Fuel Price Checker, like that in Northern Ireland, which would tell people where petrol was cheapest.
He said: “It’s run by the Consumer Council, and publishes the average price, the cheapest price and the highest price in every town, city, in every area.
“As a result, prices in Northern Ireland are actually 6p a litre cheaper both in petrol and diesel than the rest of the UK because it brings in competition.”
RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said another duty cut or a temporary reduction in VAT would go a long way towards helping drivers, “especially those on lower incomes who have no choice other than to drive”.
He said March’s 5p fuel duty cut “now looks paltry” because wholesale petrol costs have already increased by 25p since the spring statement.
Mr Williams added that the £100-plus tank of petrol was “a truly dark day” for drivers.
Christina McAnea, general secretary of Unison, said care workers were calling in sick because they did not have the money for petrol.
She also accused the Government of having no plan to tackle the cost-of-living crisis.
Mr Sunak, meanwhile, insisted that there was no extra VAT bonanza for the Treasury from petrol because people were spending less money on other goods.
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His spokesman said: “There has been no ‘VAT windfall’. In fact, we are now expecting lower VAT receipts than predicted this year.
“The revenue generated from receipts is rightly going towards putting more police on the streets, more nurses in our hospitals and better schools across the country.”
‘FUEL IMPACTS THE COST OF GOODS DELIVERED’
HAULAGE and logistics firms are also facing a nightmare over prices.
Diamond Logistics, in Guildford, Surrey, operates hundreds of trucks across the country delivering everything from clothes to blood transfusions.
Chief Kate Lester, below, accused oil companies of “profiteering”.
She said: “It impacts on the cost of goods being delivered and those rises are passed on.
"It’s a nightmare just to keep our heads above water.”
