Haulage industry hails fuel duty freeze fantastic 26 June 2012

The news today (26July 2012) that the government will not go ahead with a three pence per litre rise in fuel duty this August has been greeted with enthusiasm by the transport industry and the public.

Chancellor George Osborne confirmed that the government will now delay the fuel duty rise until 1 January 2013. It does mean that the industry is not out of the woods for long, but Osborne's office insisted that the decision means pump prices will be 10 pence a litre cheaper than if the government had not abolished the pre-existing fuel duty escalator.

As a result of repeated action to support motorists, it said, fuel duty will not have increased for two successive years and "hauliers will on average by £4,900 better off'.

The surprise sea change follows news earlier in the day that Labour had threatened to force a House of Commons vote on the issue, and a campaign by road users' groups, which argued that the rise would damage the economy.

James Hookham, FTA's managing director for policy and communications, hailed the Chancellor's announcement as excellent news for FairFuelUK, the FTA backed campaign.

"It went down to the political equivalent of penalties, but this time the public and businesses have got something to celebrate," said Hookham.

And he added: "The Chancellor's decision is absolutely right for the economy and removes that extra cost for commercial vehicle operators that would have hit them hard this summer.

"The Chancellor now sees the merits of using fuel duty cuts to stimulate growth by keeping cash within businesses. The government needs to engage in a national debate about the role of fuel taxation in the economy and we urge the Chancellor to seize this opportunity."

"This is a great boost for those organisations that back FairFuelUK," stated Peter Carroll, founder of FairFuelUK, "in particular, for the RAC, the Road Haulage Association, the FTA and The Fuelcard Company.

"Special thanks go the hundreds of thousands of people all across Britain who have signed up to the campaign. There are serious longer term issues to address on fuel taxation and pricing. But for today, we thank the government for listening and acting."

Author
Brian Tinham

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