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Theresa May freezes fuel duty AGAIN in victory for The Sun as she scraps 2p-a-litre tax rise in bid to stay PM
THERESA May will freeze fuel duty again in a bid to persuade Britain to stick with her as PM.
She will reveal Chancellor Philip Hammond is to scrap a scheduled 2p-a-litre rise at the pumps in his October 29 Budget.
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The freeze, for the ninth year in a row, is a huge victory for The Sun’s long-running Keep It Down campaign — and for our readers.
We have persuaded successive Chancellors to halt the annual tax raids on motorists, allowing them to keep almost £1,000 now in total since 2010.
In her keynote speech to end the Tories’ annual conference in Birmingham, Mrs May will also issue a plea to angry Tory MPs to bury their bitter Brexit divisions and allow her to stay on as PM after our EU exit next March.
Scrapping the inflation-linked fuel duty rise due next April saves motorists £1.20 every time they fill up a 60 litre average tank. It will cost the Treasury £800m.
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There will also be more action announced on housing by the PM, in a bid to fulfil her pledge to make it her domestic priority.
The fuel duty freeze proves to workers that the division-rocked Tory Government is “on their side”, Mrs May will insist.
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Dismissing fears that the pumps tax was about to rise, she will say: “Some have wondered if there would be a thaw in our fuel duty freeze this year.
“Today I can confirm that in the budget later this month, the Chancellor will freeze fuel duty again.
Having a “little bit of money left to put away at the end of the month” isn’t just measured “in pounds and pence”, the PM will tell the Birmingham hall.
She will add: “It’s the joy and precious memories that a week’s holiday with the family brings.
“It’s the peace of mind that comes with having some savings.”
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And rededicating herself to the Just About Managings that the PM initially went into No10 in 2016 vowing to serve, she will add: “Many people in towns and cities across our country, cannot take these for granted.
“They are the people this party exists for. They are the people for whom this party must deliver.
“It’s for them that we cut income tax. Introduced a National Living Wage. Extended free childcare. And froze fuel duty every year. Because for millions of people, their car is not a luxury. It’s a necessity.
“Money in the pockets of hard working people from a Conservative Government that is on their side.”
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Mr Hammond told The Sun that the move comes “at a significant cost to the Exchequer”.
But explaining why he is acting, the Chancellor added: “The high oil price and the near-record pump price of petrol and diesel are also imposing a significant burden on motorists.
"So we have decided that to support hardworking families, we will once again freeze fuel duty in the upcoming budget."
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Insisting that Britain’s post-Brexit future is “full of promise”, she will also tell the hall: “I passionately believe that our best days lie ahead of us and that our future is full of promise.
“Don’t let anyone tell you we don’t have what it takes: we have everything we need to succeed.”
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Mrs May will also appeal to Tories to stick with her brand of moderate Conservatism, dubbing theirs “a party of patriotism but not nationalism”.
The PM also tried to dismiss expectations that she will be ousted next Spring to insist she wants the job for the "long-term - not just for the Brexit deal".
She also promised there won't be a repeat of last year's meltdown where a bad cough meant she could barely finish her speech, telling LBC radio: "I will be ensuring that I will be standing up there and speaking strongly”.
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