The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has welcomed the Northern Ireland government's introduction this week of new legislation to tackle fuel fraud, calling it "good news for the freight industry".
New measures include the ability for the director of public prosecutions to appeal against unduly lenient sentences for fuel excise evasion.
The FTA has campaigned to combat the fraud – fuel accounts for around 40% of operating costs for HGVs, so any undercutting on price through use of illegal fuel is significant.
Seamus Leheny, FTA's policy manager for NI, called the new legislation "a step in the right direction", adding: "We know from talking to our members, that they are often undercut on prices by those using illegal fuel which deprives them of business, revenue and ultimately jobs."
