Huge fuel duty cut for truckers 'could help reduce prices for everyone'
Hard-up truckers should get 15 pence off fuel duty according to a group of MPs, in a move that could then bring costs down for others.
Fuel prices have hit all-time highs in recent months, topping £2 per litre at many filling stations.
Called an essential user rebate, MPs believe the reduction for hauliers, coaches and logistics operators would then lower food costs as they pass on the savings to supermarkets, which would have a knock-on effect to the general population amid the cost of living crisis.
Tory MP Greg Smith, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Road Freight and Logistics, said: “Our hauliers are essential to keeping our economy strong and our supply chains moving.
“However, they are being hit by sky high fuel prices — leaving many with little choice but to pass on these costs to consumers.
“This is pushing up prices and driving inflation and it’s imperative the Government counter this by introducing an essential user rebate of at least 15 pence per litre for hauliers and coach operators.”
He said that a failure to act now will “risk making an already challenging situation significantly worse”.
The Government announced in March it was cutting fuel duty by 5p, but that saving was quickly swallowed up by spiralling costs.
The Road Haulage Association backs the suggestion, and said 92 per cent of hauliers felt little or no impact from the fuel duty reduction earlier this year.
The association said running costs for the average articulated lorry have risen from £45,000 to £62,300, forcing operators to pass on increased costs to consumers and onward services wherever possible, and only 3.5 per cent of haulage businesses felt they would remain profitable without further support with fuel prices.
Richard Smith, Managing Director of the Road Haulage Association, said: “We will have a new Government in place in September, and I’d urge whoever leads it to read this report and follow its proposals. We will also be ensuring the Chancellor and Treasury team are fully aware of it.”
Mr Smith's comments came as the average fuel costs dropped slightly from the all-time highs of 189.46p per litre of petrol, and 197.52p per litre of diesel to 185.05p and 194.3p respectively on Wednesday morning.
Some filling stations across the Black Country and Staffordshire have managed to keep their prices significantly below the national average.
Blakenhall Service Station in Dudley Road, Wolverhampton has had to deploy marshals since it reduced its prices, while Himley Road Service Station in Gornalwood slashed its prices by up to 16p over the weekend.
In and around Shropshire, Griffiths Garage in Leintwardine and Grindley Brook Garage in Chester Road, Whitchurch, have kept their prices down, charging as little as 161.9p.
The cost of living has also come up in the Tory leadership contest.
Former Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled plans to remove VAT from domestic energy bills for a year if the price cap – currently just under £2,000 a year for the average home – exceeds £3,000 as is forecast by experts.
His rival for the role, Liz Truss, has pledged to "start cutting taxes from day one" with a new Budget and Spending Review that would reverse April’s rise in national insurance and next year’s corporation tax hike from 19 per cent to 25 per cent.
