Rapidly rising fuel prices have prompted calls for the introduction of a fuel regulator. While we are all getting hammered by high fuel prices, the situation is worse in the more rural areas of Wales. The introduction of a fuel regulator who would cut fuel duty when prices spike unexpectedly, freezing the price at the pump. George Osborne, in the Budget later this month should introduce a genuine fuel duty stabiliser, something that is supported by motoring organisations and the Federation for Small Business, this would cap the price of petrol at the pump if it increases beyond expectation.
The Chancellor should also look at extending the rural fuel duty derogation which is currently being trialled in parts of Scotland where 5p per litre is cut from the bill. Plaid (and the SNP) have long recognised this problem and have been pushing for it in Budgets in 2005 and 2008 with widespread support from real people outside parliament. New Labour ignored the problems of rising fuel prices, the Conservatives simply lifted the idea, watered it down and re-branded it as their own.
We are all suffering from the consequences of the massive hike in the cost of fuel recently, not all of it down to the rising cost of oil. The Tory-led Government's VAT increase and fuel duty hike last year merely pushed the price of a litre up. Businesses and especially families in rural areas, where a car is a necessity not a luxury are facing the pain because of these choices. For the short-term we need to have a fuel duty stabiliser and a special price for fuel in rural areas, but we also need to diversify and invest in renewable energy alternatives to reduce our reliance upon oil and other fossil fuels.
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