The Times - UK - 04.12.2021

2 2GM Saturday December 4 2021 | the times

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Drivers ‘priced off road’ by fuel costs

Peter Stubley

Drivers are being “taken for a ride” by

retailers who continue to charge near-

record fuel prices despite a drop in

wholesale costs, the RAC has said.

Wholesale petrol prices fell by 10p a

litre last month but the average pump

price rose by 3.1p, according to analysis

by the motoring group. Diesel’s whole-

sale price fell by 7p but motorists paid

an extra 2.7p.

Leading oil producers have agreed to

continue with plans to increase crude

production next month, following pres-

sure from Britain and the United States

to keep fuel prices down over winter.

The RAC said retailers, including the

big supermarket chains, should cut

prices by about 12p for petrol and 7p for

diesel. “Sadly, our data shows all too

clearly that drivers are being taken for a

ride by retailers,” a spokesman said.

“We can’t see any justification for the

prices that are being charged and are

concerned that drivers on lower in-

comes who depend on their vehicles

are being priced off the road altogether.

“Despite the news of a new Covid

variant, we are in a completely different

world now, with car use near to pre-

pandemic levels, so retailers shouldn’t

be taking huge profits on every litre of

fuel they sell. We therefore urge them

to do the right thing and cut their prices

to much fairer levels as a matter of ur-

gency.”

The RAC urged the government to

intervene, arguing that the fuel duty

freeze in the autumn budget “simply

wasn’t anywhere near enough to ease

the burden now being placed on mil-

lions of households who have no choice

but to use their vehicles”.

Pump prices hit a record high on

November 20 and 21 at 147.2p per litre

for petrol and 151.1p for diesel. By the

end of the month the average was

147.28p and 150.64p respectively.

The RAC said the cost was “hurting

drivers at the worst possible time” and

accused large retailers of making a

“shocking” profit. “It would be much

fairer if retailers mirrored wholesale

prices more closely,” it said.

The government said: “Fuel prices

are increasing across the world. We’ve

provided £4.2 billion of support to help

people, including effectively cutting

taxes for workers on universal credit,

providing £500 million for the most

vulnerable families and freezing fuel

duty for the 12th year in a row.”

Sir Keir Starmer has said that Labour is

the party of middle England and insist-

ed that he has the charisma and team

required to win the next election.

In an interview with The Times, the

Labour leader said that his shadow

cabinet reshuffle was designed to get

“the strongest possible team” on the

pitch before a general election he

believes could be held in May 2023.

Starmer said he believed his party

was on track to win a consistent poll

lead over the government in the next 12

months. “The contrast between

ourselves and the government will

become starker,” he said. “Obviously

we’ve made significant progress in the

polls since April of last year. The green

shoots — or red shoots — are there.”

Setting out his pitch for government,

he accused Conservative ministers of

failing business and of hitting people’s

pockets with tax rises and a cost of

living crisis.

Asked whether he considered

Labour to be the party of middle

Labour is middle England’s

party now, Starmer insists

Eleni Courea Political Reporter

Steven Swinford Political Editor

England he said: “Yes, absolutely, it is

and it must be... Have we got to focus

on winning votes in the red wall? Yes,

but we’ve also got to focus on winning

votes across the whole United

Kingdom.”

On Monday Labour’s leader demot-

ed key allies for underperformance and

installed high-profile, centrist figures.

In a letter to the shadow cabinet he said

he expected the team to step up its per-

formance. “How we operate in the next

18 months will be very different from

the last,” he said. “The public are hold-

ing us to a higher bar and this means we

must hold each other to a higher level of

performance and delivery.”

Labour suffered a blow on Thursday

when the union Unite, its largest fund-

er, announced it would cut back its

donations. Starmer told The Times that

he wanted to raise more funding from

all sources, including private donors.

He warned his shadow cabinet: “We

have to take tough decisions about how

we deploy our limited funds.”

He was unapologetic about his deci-

sion not to consult his deputy, Angela

Rayner, over the reshuffle. Rayner first

learnt of the plan from The Times on

Monday morning and found herself

fielding questions about a reshuffle

during what she had intended to be a

major intervention on sleaze.

He insisted their relationship was

misunderstood. “There is no personal

issue between me and Angela. We’re

friends, we get on, we talk a lot,” he said.

The Labour leader said Boris John-

son’s speech at the CBI, in which he paid

homage to Peppa Pig, was evidence that

the government was not serious.

He argued this formed part of the

“central division” between Labour and

the Conservatives: “You do need gov-

ernment that has a respectful, grown-

up relationship with business. That’s

what we’ve put on the table.”

He expressed concern that there

could be further restrictions as a result

of ministers’ past refusal to keep masks

compulsory in crowded spaces.

“If there are further measures this

Christmas or restrictions, which I hope

there won’t be... the responsibility is

firmly on the door of the prime minister.”

Johnson’s broken promises hit people in

the pocket, Interview, pages 40-

£6 billion a year and affect 31 million

people. Under one proposal, the chan-

cellor could cut the basic rate of income

tax by 1p in both 2023 and 2024 in the

run-up to an election in the spring or

summer of that year. The basic rate

would fall from 20p to 18p in the pound.

Of the 31 million taxpayers,

26 million pay only the basic rate levied

at between £12,500 and £50,000. The

tax cut would be worth up to £750 a

year, with those in the higher bands

benefiting most.

One cabinet minister said the Tories

needed a “retail policy” on tax. “There’s

no point in waiting until 2024 — it will

be too late,” he said. “The cost of living

crisis is starting to bite, inflation is

looming. We need to do something

sooner, to demonstrate our low-tax

credentials.”

Paul Johnson, head of the Institute

for Fiscal Studies, said that cutting

income tax after increasing national

insurance to fund health and social care

would be “indefensible”, adding: “To

introduce the health and social care

levy, which essentially only affects

workers, then to cut income tax, which

also benefits people who receive their in-

come from rent, occupational pensions

and other holdings, discriminates in

favour of the wealthy.”

Andrew Ellson

Consumer Affairs Correspondent

Every home in Britain will see their

energy bills rise by up to £85 next year

to cover the cost of the collapse of Bulb

Energy and other suppliers, according

to the industry regulator.

The increase will be on top of any

other rise needed to cover the cost of

surging wholesale prices. In its first

public estimate of the cost of the energy

insolvency crisis, Ofgem said the col-

lapses will add £80-£85 to bills.

Bulb has been placed into adminis-

tration, with the government lending

£1.7 billion to cover short-term costs.

Firms are struggling with a fourfold

rise in the wholesale price of gas this

year. Many smaller suppliers have been

caught out by the price cap and their

failure to hedge against rising whole-

sale prices means that many have had

to supply energy to customers at a low-

er price than they can buy it for. Since

August, 23 suppliers with a combined

3.7 million customers have collapsed.

£85 rise in

energy bills as

crisis worsens

Pensioner

£19,

2021-22 £1,286 £

2022-23 £1,286 £

2023-24 £1,222 -£

2024-25 £1,157 -£

Average wage

£30,

2021-22 £3,528 £

2022-23 £3,528 £

2023-24 £3,352 -£

2024-25 £3,176 -£

Nurse earning

£33,

2021-22 £4,163 £

2022-23 £4,163 £

2023-24 £3,955 -£

2024-25 £3,747 -£

Higher earner

£60,

2021-22 £11,432 £

2022-23 £11,432 £

2023-24 £11,055 -£

2024-25 £10,678 -£

Higher earner

£100,

2021-22 £27,432 £

2022-23 £27,432 £

2023-24 £27,055 -£

2024-25 £26,678 -£

How much income tax will you pay?

Assuming the basic rate reduces to 19%

in 2023-24 and 18% in 2024-

Difference to

2021-22 (£)

Source: Blick Rothenberg

continued from page 1

Plan to cut taxes

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THE WEATHER

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30

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7

5

8

5

5

3

Bright and breezy with scattered
showers once early rain clears
eastern Britain. Full forecast, page 81

Boutique owner

sues for £1.3m

Bridget Hutchcroft, 60,

head of Pandora Dress

Agency, a boutique in

Knightsbridge, is

suing a “fashion

connoisseur” over an

alleged £1.3 million

swindle. Page 9

Planning failure

over Euro final

Sturgeon in

oilfield row

Nicola Sturgeon,
Scotland’s first minister,
is facing a backlash
over her rejection of
the Cambo oilfield
project as business
leaders said jobs were
being put at risk. Page 4

Covid rethink

on interest rate

Michael Saunders, a

Bank of England

policymaker, says he

will need time to assess

Omicron’s economic

effects before deciding

whether to vote for an

interest rate rise. Page 51

Expats ‘lose

pension cash’

Britons living abroad
claim they have lost
tens of thousands of
pounds from their
pensions after being
convinced to take out
investments by
deVere Group. Page 23

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A “collective failure” of

organisations involved

in planning for the

Euro 2020 final at

Wembley contributed

to the serious crowd

trouble, an independent

review has said. Page 8

COMMENT 29

LEADING ARTICLES 33

REGISTER 82

CROSSWORD 87

TV & RADIO

SATURDAY REVIEW

Beijing lures

Commonwealth

China is turning to the

military and political

indoctrination of rulers

in Commonwealth

countries as criticism

grows of its use of

foreign investment and

debt diplomacy. Page 44

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ROSE TREMAIN

Why writing from

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now unacceptable

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