Kwasi Kwarteng happy to ‘step in’ with call for fuel tax cut as drivers pay £5 extra for a tank of petrol due to declining sterling value
- New Chancellor said he was happy to ‘go in’ with calls to cut fuel tax
- It comes as it turned out that drivers pay an extra £5 for a tank of petrol
- Yesterday, on a gloomy day for markets, the pound hit its lowest level in 37 years
Kwasi Kwarteng said he was happy to ‘go in’ with a call for fuel tax cuts as drivers were found to pay an extra £5 for a tank of petrol due to the depreciation of the pound.
Analysis by the AA found that the price of petrol at UK service stations would be ‘at least’ 9 pence a liter cheaper if the pound had held on to its $1.35 value by mid-February, rather than this week’s level of $1.14. Yesterday it dropped to $1.09.
The difference in pump prices adds around £4.95 to the cost of refueling a typical 55-litre family car.
Kwasi Kwarteng (pictured) said he was happy to ‘go in’ with a call to cut fuel tax as drivers were charged £5 extra for a tank of petrol due to the pound’s depreciation
After the Chancellor unveiled his mini-budget in the House of Commons, Conservative MP Robert Halfon asked him if he could “do everything to cut fuel taxes” in the next budget.
Mr. Kwarteng replied: ‘I would very much like to involve my good friend in this.’
Pump price cuts as oil prices have fallen to where they were before Russia invaded Ukraine are being “seriously undermined” by sterling weakness, the AA said.
Analysis by the AA found that the price of petrol at UK service stations would be ‘at least’ 9 pence a liter cheaper if the pound had held on to its $1.35 value by mid-February, rather than this week’s level of $1.14. Yesterday it dropped to $1.09
A spokesman said: ‘The impact of the exchange rate is often overlooked when drivers compare oil price movements with those at the pump.
“Oil and fuel in the commodities markets are traded in dollars, which makes the weaker pound very bad news for motorists.”