Fuel Duty

My Liberal Democrat parliamentary colleagues and I agree that it is important to protect drivers from any further financial strain, given the current cost-of-living crisis.

I am pleased to confirm that fuel duty will remain frozen for another year. In light of the substantial fuel price increases in recent years, it wouldn’t have been fair to apply a duty escalator, because the Treasury would anyway be accruing more income as a proportion of the rising cost. It would also be unfair following the Conservative government’s economic mismanagement, which worsened an already bad cost-of-living crisis.

Discussions with respect to the rural fuel duty relief scheme are ongoing. Rural residents often face higher costs at the pump, not least due to the additional distances they need to travel. We are calling for the broadening of this relief scheme.

We will continue to push for policies that ease the financial pressure on all drivers, especially those in rural areas, and ensure that any changes to fuel taxation are fair and balanced.