Fuel duty on petrol and diesel is the latest focus of media attention...
Is fuel duty going to go up?
Almost certainly, and the case for this is strong. The rate of fuel duty hasn’t gone up much since 2010, and was even cut by 5p per litre by Rishi Sunak in his 2022 Budget, to help ease the costs to consumers of the energy crisis. That cut has since been kept in place, despite oil prices having subsided somewhat in the interim. Rachel Reeves could easily justify reversing what was supposed to be a “temporary” measure. That would raise about £2bn – a tidy sum.
She could even go further. Compared with the level prevailing in, say, 2005, fuel duty is much lower in real terms, and could be increased to as much as 80p just to bring it back to where it was 20 years ago. The resulting jump of more than 20p per litre would no doubt bring a backlash, but also some much more meaningful revenue, and the rise could be graduated.
It’s worth reminding ourselves that the old “fuel duty escalator” was introduced by John Major’s Conservative administration in 1993, and pushed duty up by 3 per cent and then 6 per cent a year over inflation throughout the 1990s as part of the drive to reduce pollution and congestion.
Esta historia es de la edición August 30, 2024 de The Independent.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición August 30, 2024 de The Independent.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Joshua is 'willing to die' in Wembley battle of Britain
Anthony Joshua has insisted that he is ready to “give everything to be victorious” against Daniel Dubois on Saturday, as the Britons clash at Wembley Stadium.
City's man for all occasions.could be named world No 1
Rodri may be first defensive midfielder to win Ballon d'Or
Liverpool overcome poor start to beat Milan in style
Another first for Arne Slot at Liverpool, and one that was much more significant than a debut win in this new Champions League.
Guardian parent company in talks to sell Observer
The Guardian Media Group (GMG) is in talks to sell The Observer newspaper to Tortoise Media, a news business launched in 2019 by a former BBC executive. The media giant is in exclusive discussions to sell the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.
'People can have a fantastic.second act. I'm living mine'
Actor and comic Omid Djalili is back for a fiery new stand-up tour. He tells Helen Coffey how he managed to channel rage into humour and why he's not leaving comedy to the young
Islamist party makes shock return to Kashmiri politics
Observers split on motivation of Jamaat-e-Islami, banned under terror laws and which boycotted elections for 30 years
US rapper charged with sex trafficking and racketeering
Sean \"Diddy\" Combs, the rapper and music mogul who has faced allegations of sexual abuse, was charged with racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, according to a federal indictment unsealed yesterday.
Suspect in Trump shooting lurked for hours in bushes
The gunman accused of trying to assassinate Donald Trump hid in the bushes of the former president's Florida golf club for almost 12 hours, according to officials.
'I am a rapist', says husband of sexually abused woman
A French man accused of drugging his wife and recruiting dozens of strangers to rape her over a decade has declared in court: “I am a rapist, like everyone else in this courtroom.”
Hezbollah vows to retaliate after pager attack kills nine
Officials in Lebanon and Syria blame Israel for the explosions