Fuel anger 'part of wider concerns'

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The Government has been urged to take on board motorists’ concerns about the soaring cost of fuel by the chair of the Commons Transport Committee.

While fuel protesters brought their grievances to the heart of government, Louise Ellman MP said the hauliers’ protest reflected "wider concern" about prices and the rising cost of living.

She said: "It is a concern. Everybody is feeling the impact of the increased cost of living, it is not restricted to one sector. That's something the Government will have to think about. But I don't think that policy should be dictated by protests from one section of road users."

Meanwhile, blockades of ports by fishermen across the Channel prompted the French president Nicolas Sarkozy to propose a Europe-wide cut in VAT to reduce fuel prices.

Ms Ellman said a continent-wide deal may be part of the answer to the problem, as the issue is not restricted to any one country.

One solution put forward by hauliers is for them to be granted a rebate on fuel duty similar to that which public transport companies are afforded.

How this would sit with normal road users who are restricted to finding cheaper car insurance deals in order to reduce motoring costs is unclear.

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