Road Haulage Association: Will it be 16/16 for Alistair Darling?
The road haulage industry is among those waiting to see if Alistair Darling will make is 16 our out of 16 on fuel duty in his Budget tomorrow.
If an increase of at least 2 pence a litre goes ahead as expected on April 1, fuel duty (petrol and diesel) will have risen by an average of 1% a month for 16 months.
“The Chancellor will be known for an astonishing ratcheting up of duty levels in the depths of recession – and our duty level was already by far the highest in the EU,” says RHA director of policy Jack Semple.
“Transport companies will be pressing customers for higher rates to cover higher costs. Mr Darling could do his bit by recognising the impact on the transport industry and urging firms to pay their contractors sustainable rates,” he says.
Note for editors:
Before the fuel duty increase of December 2008, fuel duty stood at 50.35 pence a litre. It rose by 1.84 pence a litre in April 2009 to 52.19 pence a litre, then by 2 pence a litre in September 2009 to its current level, 56.19. A further 2 pence increase in April would take duty to 58.19 pence a litre – an increase of 16% in 16 months.
Road Haulage Association – phone us first
For more details, contact RHA Head of Media Relations,
Kate Gibbs
Tel: +44 (0) 1932 838917
Mob: + 44 (0) 7979 531451
www.rha.uk.net
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