The next prime minister must crack down on skyrocketing fuel prices or face Canadian-style direct action from well-fed drivers

EVERY motorist knows that fuel prices are going up like a rocket but falling like a feather.

So yesterday’s report by the competition watchdog, which found “cause for concern” in the growing price differential between crude oil and fuel at gas stations, came as no surprise.

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There’s already plenty of evidence that oil companies are ripping us off at the pumps. Now the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says it will launch another study on fuel prices and will report on it in the fall.

But more reviews are not needed, everyone knows the problem.

Motorists are fleeced not only by the government with high fuel taxes, but also by oil companies. It’s time to actually do something for the hard working people of Britain.

The government needs to cut either sales tax or fuel taxes – and make sure the cut is passed on to motorists.

Tormented Parent

Three words should be on the lips of every Tory leader candidate this morning: “Canada, Canada, Canada.”

The reason? If we don’t do something about the cost of gas and diesel soon, we’ll be faced with a Canadian-style trucker demonstration like the one that took place this year in the capital, Ottawa.

Trucks surrounded the Parliament building and refused to move for weeks.

We have already seen some of this here, at the demonstrations on our freeways last week. If nothing is done, similarly disruptive demos will spread like wildfire across the country.

To be clear, I am against direct action and anything that causes inconvenience to people trying to get on with their lives. But I absolutely sympathize with the protesters’ goals, which is simply to lower the cost of fuel at the pump.

These pickup truck drivers and hauliers are struggling to make enough money to support their families and keep their businesses afloat.

However, it is not only companies that are affected by rising prices at the pump, but ordinary people across the country.

In my constituency of Harlow, Essex, a concerned single mother told me she couldn’t afford to go to work because she didn’t have the money to pay the extra fuel bills.

Instead of spending money on frontline nurses and doctors, the NHS will have to spend an extra million to fill up ambulances. Instead of officers on duty, police forces pay for increased fuel costs for their vehicles.

Whichever way you look at it, people are being hit with additional fuel costs, compounding the cost-of-living crisis.

Robert Halfon

Whichever way you look at it, people are being hit with additional fuel costs, compounding the cost-of-living crisis. Food and drink, including staples like bread, pasta and coffee, are becoming increasingly expensive.

Why? Partly because transport and energy costs have increased. Soaring fuel prices feed inflation, which in turn pushes many to demand higher wages.

It is a doom-loop. Currently the cost of petrol is £1.91 and diesel is over £1.98. For many people, the increased costs are crippling.

The average family pays £16 more to fill up their tank than they did a year ago.

Hauliers are spending £120 more on fuel compared to February.

For working men and women in white vans, refueling costs an additional £25. One mother even told me that she was considering homeschooling her child because she could no longer afford the costs of running the school.

With petrol prices here currently 20p a liter above the average in 35 European countries and diesel 25p more, more needs to be done NOW to help those in need.

According to the RAC Foundation and advocacy group FairFuelUK, average profit margins for diesel have increased by 150 per cent in the last two years, with gasoline profit margins more than doubling.

fair deal

The Government’s implemented £37bn cost-of-living package, as well as a 5p cut in fuel taxes, are welcome moves. But people are still fighting.

When Boris Johnson appeared before the House of Commons Liaison Committee this week, I questioned the Prime Minister about pump prices.

I urged him to cut fuel costs and, as FairFuelUK has suggested, start a watchdog akin to energy regulator Ofgem.

The new body would regulate gas station prices and ensure drivers are treated fairly. What is certain is that this madness at the pumps cannot continue for the benefit of businesses, services and ordinary people trying to go about their daily lives.

With the prime minister likely to stay in office for a few more weeks, it is very worrying that he has said there will be no major policy changes.

We urgently need a statement from the new Chancellor, Nadhim Zahawi – before the House of Commons goes into the summer recess – outlining what he will do to change this situation.

The livelihood and well-being of millions depend on it.

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