THE chancellor Rishi Sunak has dropped a hint that fuel duty could be cut in this week's Spring Statement, he went on record as saying that filling a vehicle with petrol should not become ‘prohibitively expensive.
There are calls from MPs on all sides though to go even further, with some pointing to Mr Sunak holding back some tools at his disposal, possibly to deploy near election time. The Daily Telegraph also reported at the weekend that the chancellor could help with the incoming 1.25 per cent National Insurance increase. Instead of cutting NI though, the government is raising the thresholds at which people begin to pay the tax instead.
The multi-millionaire chancellor has though stated he will ‘stand by’ the public through what many analysts believe could be the worst cost of living crisis in generations. That doesn’t mean he’ll be able to totally absorb the pain of sky-rocketing prices on fuel, food, and energy. With companies like BP posting huge profits in Q1 2022 (BP posted a Q1 2022 profit of $2.6 billion), you do have to ask if taxing the big corporations is a better way, rather than simply squeezing families further.
The move to limit the pain on drivers and companies' fuel bills with be music to the ears of all in the UK, as the knock-on effect should trickle down and lighten the load on so many aspects of daily life. It should also go some way to help cut the amount of fuel theft going on at the moment. Earlier this month around 15,000 litres of diesel was stolen from a petrol and diesel depot in the north-east of England. The fuel was pumped out of a storage tank and taken away. It’s reported the thieves made off with more than £24,000 worth in the raid.
