Government pledges crackdown on fuel prices
The government says it is delivering a “clear message” to fuel suppliers that they must provide “a fair deal at the pump”, in the context of significant diesel and petrol price increases since the Iran conflict began.
The chancellor Rachel Reeves and the energy secretary Ed Miliband are meeting with fuel retailers and energy suppliers at 11 Downing Street today as part of a coordinated government crackdown on pump prices. The Treasury says it will press the suppliers on the steps they are taking to keep prices down, and what more can be done.
In addition, the chancellor has written to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s competition watchdog, asking it to crack down on “rip-offs” on road fuel.
The fuel price hikes have come in the wake of the United States’ war with Iran, which caused oil prices to soar. The CMA has said that filling station operators have been “put on notice”, and the chancellor has warned that she “will not tolerate” firms exploiting the situation to profiteer.
CMA will require fuel retailers to provide data on their sales, revenue and costs, in an escalation of a review into profit margins in the industry that it announced when the conflict began.
Meanwhile, the government says it is taking action to ensure major retailers are signed up to its Fuel Finder service, to help drivers identify the cheapest forecourts in the vicinity.
“I will not tolerate any company exploiting the current situation to make excess profits at consumers’ expense,” said Rachel Reeves.
Ed Miliband added: “Tackling the cost of living is our number one priority – all fuel retailers must sign up for Fuel Finder so drivers can find the cheapest price at the pump.”
Logistics UK chief executive Ben Fletcher welcomed the government’s interventions which he said represented “decisive action”.
“Concrete action which helps logistics businesses to mitigate the cost of fuel – the single biggest operating cost – is timely and helpful,” he said.
“As an industry, our members work at low margins and cannot absorb significant cost rises. Excessive price rises would inevitably be passed on to customers, which means consumers pay more and would increase the cost of living challenge.”
The government’s announcements come in the wake of concerns about fuel duty raised by Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the opposition, at prime minister Keir Starmer’s weekly parliamentary questions on Wednesday, a move that was welcomed by the Road Haulage Association (RHA).
RHA managing director Richard Smith said it was right for Mrs Badenoch to have queried whether increasing fuel costs through a planned duty hike in September was the right approach in the context of ongoing cost-of-living pressures.
“The chancellor must change course on fuel duty,” he said.
“We have been saying this for many months. The politics has finally caught up with the reality our HGV and coach members live every day.
“Our members are operating on thin margins. Any fuel cost is a threat to the future of businesses in the supply-chain, the coach sector and the wider economy.
“We’ve asked to urgently meet with the chancellor so we can discuss why we’re calling for an immediate fuel duty cut, a temporary cut on fuel VAT, and mandatory 30-day payment terms to address cash-flow challenges in our sector.”
At prime minister’s questions, Mrs Badenoch said: “I heard from a builder who has 115 employees using 75 vans. With the jobs tax, sky-high energy bills and now a hike in petrol prices, that builder is having sleepless nights.
“How does the prime minister justify a rise in fuel duty to that small business owner and millions more like him up and down the country?”
During the session Mr Starmer reiterated that fuel duty would remain frozen until September, but added: “We will keep the situation under review in the light of what is happening in Iran.”
