Archived press release

Pre-budget: lorry loads of lollies

8 November 2000

Fuel protestors should call off their planned “go-slow” convoy, Friends of the Earth said today. The call came after Gordon Brown announced a series of measures to help hauliers, and “buy off” fuel protests, including:

• a freeze in fuel duty (costing more than £500 million) for at least one year
• cuts in fuel duty on low sulphur petrol, by 2p a litre by Budget 2001
• cuts in fuel duty on low sulphur diesel, by 3p a litre by Budget 2001
• a £100 million fund to subsidise replacement of older lorries
• a “vignette” system to tax foreign lorries
• changes to the vehicle excise system for lorries (worth £715 for each lorry), cars and tractors.

Friends of the Earth supports high fossil fuel taxation. This is essential to discourage excessive car use, and to fight dangerous climate change. This month has seen some of the worst floods and storms in Britain in living memory. Homes have been flooded, farms and businesses have been devastated and thousands of families face a bleak Christmas. Money from fuel taxes should be spent on alternatives to the car, better and cheaper trains and buses, particularly in rural areas, and safer streets for cyclists and pedestrians.

Next Monday sees the start of a crucial world summit in the Hague, to discuss international action to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The summit will be presented with the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which has concluded that “Higher temperatures have already started to cause strong hurricanes, severe floods and droughts” (Draft IPCC report 2000, as quoted in the New York Times).

Commenting, FOE Executive Director Charles Secrett said:

“Mr Brown has offered hauliers, motorists and fuel tax protestors a lorry-load of lollipops. We regret his decision to freeze fuel duty - we hope that car use will not rise as a result. But we welcome cuts in low sulphur petrol duty - which will help improve air quality. But Mr Brown has missed the chance to take further action to fight climate change, by penalising heavy fossil fuel users and by imposing a windfall tax on oil company profits.

Hauliers and fuel tax protestors have got more than enough from this statement. It is time for them to call off their protests. To continue would be an insult to the many thousands of people who have suffered in the recent floods and storms. We have to learn that the age of cheap fossil fuels is over for ever. The job of Government is to help manage the transition to a sustainable economy, not to pay Danegeld to people trying to hold the rest of the country to ransom.”

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust