MPs petition government to keep pledge not to hike fuel prices

Date: Monday, March 9, 2020 | Author: Illya Verpraet

A group of Conservative MPs led by Robert Halfon, MP for Harlow, was today (9 March) planning to hand a letter to the Chancellor Rishi Sunak urging the government to keep its promise not to raise duty on fuel.

The FairFuelUK lobbying group claims Prime Minister Boris Johnson said before the general election he had “no intention to raise fuel duty”, but rumours have since emerged that the government will include a rise in fuel duty in the Budget, which is scheduled to be announced this week.

The letter states: “we are optimistic that this will be a government for workers. The measures announced to cut taxes for lower earners are really welcome – all the more reason for not whacking normal folk hard with higher taxes on fuel”.

The group of MPs is joined by Howard Cox, founder of FairFuelUK. He will also hand in a petition that’s been signed by 134,201 supporters.

The FairFuel campaign claims the UK “ranks number 1 in total fuel tax take and the highest for filling up at the pumps”.

Last month, the average price for unleaded was about 125p per litre, while diesel was at just under 130p per litre, according to figures from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

But, according to the Royal Dutch Touring Club (ANWB), a travellers’ association in the Netherlands, in February prices in France were around 128p and 139p per litre and prices in the Netherlands were at 152p and 124p for unleaded petrol and diesel respectively.

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