Double tax blow to send petrol soaring: Duty and VAT rise add 3.5p to litre of unleaded in a WEEKEND

Drivers face a double whammy as two petrol price rises within days are set to drive up the cost of filling a tank to record heights.

An increase in fuel duty comes into effect today, followed by a rise in VAT to 20 per cent on Tuesday.

The net effect will be to add an average of 3.55p to a litre of unleaded petrol and 3.64p to diesel.

Both tax hikes will heap pain on millions of families already reeling from the soaring costs of living over the past year.
petrol pump

Soaring: Petrol prices will be pushed up more by a duty and VAT hike

Motorists are currently paying out more than £10million a day extra in petrol costs than a year ago, according to the AA.

Once the two rises come into effect, the average price of unleaded petrol will climb to 127.71p a litre, up by 18.4 per cent from 107.74p a year ago.

This means it costs around £21 a month, £255 a year, extra to run a car.

Meanwhile, the average price of a litre of diesel is set to be some 20.4 per cent higher than a year ago. That will take the average litre price to 131.99p which adds around £19 a month, or £228 a year, to bills.

The punishing increases are not only an immediate blow to household budgets, as they are also likely to mean higher prices for food and other goods and services.

A rise in the cost of petrol means the Government and Bank of England target of 2 per cent for inflation has no chance of being met for at least 12 months.

And the Consumer Price Index measure of inflation, which stands at 3.3 per cent, appears likely to climb.

Professor Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation, said: ‘It is a bleak mid-winter for motorists with already record petrol prices set to rise significantly.

‘And that won’t be the end of it with more increases in fuel duty scheduled for April. Given that each penny increase in fuel duty raises about an extra £500million for the Exchequer, it is easy to see why the Chancellor is tempted to send up rates.

‘But if the nation’s 34million motorists are pushed too far they will drive less and the Treasury could actually see their tax take fall.’

On average we pay almost £900 in petrol taxes annually. A study by the European
Automobile Manufacturers’ Association shows Britain has the highest fuel taxes of
27 European countries. Our tax is also higher than in the U.S., Canada and Australia.

The Freight Transport Association said the fuel duty rise would leave the industry ‘with a £95million hangover’.

Simon Chapman, the FTA’s chief economist, said: ‘Diesel is not an optional extra for industry. It is essential to keep shops stocked and businesses supplied with materials.

‘Rises in fuel commodity prices have already left operators facing diesel prices 9p
per litre higher than a year ago – adding £3,800 per year to the bill of running a truck.

‘This latest fuel duty increase, together with those previously introduced this year, will add a further £1,200 per year.’

Shadow chancellor Alan Johnson said: ‘In the election campaign George Osborne said the Conservatives had no plans to increase VAT.

‘We have been hearing a great deal about the LibDem U-turn on student fees. Well, this is a Tory U-turn, with the handbrake on, and motorists are being made to pay for it.’

Petrol prices hit record high

Motorists are now paying more than £60 for tank of petrol after the cost of fuel reached a record high, the AA said.

The average price is now 121.76p a litre, overtaking the previous record figure of 121.61p reached on May 12 this year.

Average diesel prices are now 125.73p a litre - still short of the July 2008 record of 133.25p.

Petrol is now 11.88p more expensive than it was at the beginning of this year, with motorists having to pay almost £6 more to fill an average tank.

The extra monthly cost of petrol for a two-car family is £25.23, compared with the start of this year.

AA president Edmund King said: "In the past week, we have seen the average price of petrol shoot up 1.7p a litre across the UK and diesel rise 1.61p.

"It comes at a particularly bad time for drivers who have struggled with appalling winter weather and often seen their fuel drain away while stuck in snow-bound traffic jams."

He went on: "Although the wholesale price of petrol has risen sharply in the past fortnight, there is a growing feeling of helplessness among drivers with winter travel disruption and ever-rising fuel costs. If current prices persist, the new year increase in fuel duty and VAT will push petrol prices up to 124p a litre.

"Our only hope is that either oil and fuel markets settle back down or the pound strengthens against the dollar. Until then, it is an even more uncomfortable ride for families trying to keep their cars on the road."

Oil giants deny claims of \'profiteering\' after big freeze sends petrol prices to record high

Petrol prices are set to hit a new record high tomorrow having matched it today, motoring experts have predicted.

Soaring oil and wholesale fuel prices, and alleged 'profiteering' by oil giants and petrol retailers -which they deny - are blamed for the increases.

Prices are likely to rise even higher in the New Year when the VAT rate goes up another 2.5 per cent - to 20 per cent.

The current record price for petrol 121.61p set on 12 May 2010.

But the AA, which has accused oil giants and fuel retailers of 'profiteering' said: 'It is highly likely that UK average petrol prices will set a new record on Friday.

The latest price - from yesterday’s fuel receipts - is 121.56p a litre for petrol and 125.51p for diesel.'

The record price for diesel is 133.25p set on 17 July 2008.

At the beginning of 2010 petrol averaged 109.88p a litre and since then has risen 11.68p a litre.

It means drivers are paying £5.84 to fill their tanks. And the extra monthly cost of petrol for a two-car family is now £24.80.

AA President Edmund King said: 'In the past week, we have seen the average price of petrol shoot up 1.7p a litre across the UK and diesel rise 1.61p.

'It comes at a particularly bad time for drivers who have struggled with appalling winter weather and often seen their fuel drain away while stuck in snow-bound traffic jams.

'Although the wholesale price of petrol has risen sharply in the past fortnight, there is a growing feeling of helplessness among drivers with winter travel disruption and ever-rising fuel costs.

'If current prices persist, the new year increase in fuel duty and VAT will push petrol prices up to 124p a litre.'
Snow-bound: The petrol price increases come after winter weather brought chaos to Britain's roads

Snow-bound: The petrol price increases come after winter weather brought chaos to Britain's roads

He added: 'Our only hope is that either oil and fuel markets settle back down or the pound strengthens against the dollar. Until then, it is an even more uncomfortable ride for families trying to keep their cars on the road.'

Adrian Tink, RAC Motoring Strategist, added: 'It's unbelievable to think that, compared to this time last year, petrol is 13p per per litre more expensive. That's over £7 more every time you fill up an average tank.'

He said: 'You can't get away from the fact that we have seen 5 rises in fuel duty in the past two years - and we're due another one in January plus a VAT rise.

'Who knows what the price will be come January 5th, 2011 - an average of 125p per litre is very feasible.'

Mr Tink said familes were hit hard: 'If the Government is serious about ending the war on motorists then for the large majority of drivers that starts at the petrol pumps.

'January's rise must be cancelled, and the overall issue of the price of petrol in this country needs looking at urgently.'

On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude rose 42 cents, or 0.48 percent, to $88.70 a barrel.

Brian Madderson, chairman of the petrol retailers' trade association RMI Petrol 'strongly refuted' charges of profiteering and blamed the rising wholesale cost of petrol.

He said margins per litre retained by filling stations were down to 3p a litre and retailers were going out of business and closing at the rate of 500 a year

'The wholesale cost of product from the oil companies has increased by as much as 1.5p per litre in the last week,' he remarked.

Retailers were struggling to keep up and pay their own rising fuel bills, he said.
 

Motorists \'stung at the pumps in the big freeze\' as petrol prices soar

Petrol giants were accused of profiteering last night after prices at the pumps soared as temperatures plunged.

Retailers were accused of talking up a ‘fuel crisis’ when only individual filling stations in some areas ran short.

The AA said Britain’s 33million drivers are now being ‘stung at the pumps’ as fuel prices head towards record highs.
Pumped up: Petrol prices have rocketed at the weekend, with retailers blaming a supply shortage on the cold weather

They issued the warning as more Arctic conditions swept in, with freezing fog blanketing much of England and temperatures plunging as low as minus 18C.

At the weekend the average cost of petrol shot up by 0.76p a litre from 120.07p to 120.83. Diesel prices increased 0.54p over the weekend, from 124.18p a litre to 124.72.

AA president Edmund King said: ‘Drivers battled through snow last week, often on untreated roads, to get to work, only to be stung at the pumps this weekend.

‘Wholesale prices may have been going up with oil reaching a new high, but pump prices were already going up a fifth of a penny last week. Consumers want to know: what happened last weekend to cause such a big hike?’

The AA said the UK record high petrol price of 121.61 was achieved on May 12 this year. The record diesel price of 133.25p came on July 17, 2008.

Retailers said their hand was forced by increases in the world oil markets’ price for crude, which increased by 2.13 per cent between Friday morning and yesterday evening.

Brian Madderson, chairman of the petrol retailers’ trade association RMI Petrol said: ‘We strongly refute these allegations from the AA. None of our members have profiteered from the very real fuel shortages seen during the cold spell, indeed many have suffered as customers and fuel struggled to get to petrol forecourts.’

Last night the Met Office said that the cold snap would remain in place for another ten days, with a brief respite this weekend.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1336320/UK-weather-Motorists-stung-pumps-big-freeze-petrol-prices-soar.html#ixzz17PIPagiU

Fuel firm Greenergy\'s bid could make Tesco top petrol retailer

 

Tesco could become of one Britain's biggest petrol retailers through its investment in Greenergy, a major road fuel supplier, which is understood to have launched bids for 1,240 forecourts owned by French oil group Total and US-owned Murco.

Both oil companies have put their UK retail chains up for sale to focus on oil and gas production.

Tesco, the UK's largest retailer, owns 35.6% of Greenergy, with the remainder owned by the fuel supplier's directors and staff. Greenergy suplies Tesco's filling stations and many of those operated by its supermarket rivals. The group's new chief executive, Paul Lester, the former boss of defence and shipbuilding group VT, is understood to be in preliminary talks with Total about buying its 780 petrol stations in the UK. Lester is also said to be interested in 460 Murco stations, owned by America's Murphy Oil Corporation.

US private equity group Blackstone is also thought to have submitted first-round bids for the forecourt operations of Total and Murco.

Greenergy, a privately-owned company founded in 1992, has ambitious expansion plans drawn up by Lester and founder Andrew Owens, who recently stepped up to chairman. Their goal is to double the company's market share over the next five years, which would see it supply some 3,600 of Britain's 9,000 petrol stations.

If Greenergy succeeds, Tesco could become a major petrol retailer in Britain as well as the main fuel supplier to most of its supermarket rivals. It has already diversified into banking and mobile phones

A spokeswoman for Greenergy declined to comment on any bids, but reiterated that the company "had been looking to expand infrastructure assets in the UK and recently invested in new terminals".

The petrol, diesel and biofuel supplier has seen its turnover grow from £60m in 2001 to £2.8bn this year, and supplies 7.9bn litres of fuel a year. Its customers include the major oil companies and supermarkets, as well as bus and logistics companies.

JP Morgan is handling the Total auction while Goldman Sachs is overseeing the sale of Murco's UK retail chain and a refinery.

London-based Greenergy is building a new terminal in Cardiff, including new rail loading facilities, following its recent acquisition and refurbishment of the Mayflower Terminal in Plymouth and investment in new facilities at Seals Sands in Teesside. The company wants to move fuel by rail rather than road or ship between Cardiff and other terminals.

 

Asda launches petrol price war by slashing cost of fuel by 2p per litre

Asda triggered a price war over fuel last night by cutting 2p from the cost of petrol.

The move has forced rival supermarket and oil giants into reducing their prices after weeks of record highs.

The supermarket's price cut takes its petrol down to 115.9p a litre - or £5.27 a gallon - while its diesel will drop 1p to 118.9p a litre.

Within hours Shell followed suit by cutting 2p off both its petrol and diesel prices.

Asda triggered a price war over fuel last night by cutting 2p from the cost of petrol.

The move has forced rival supermarket and oil giants into reducing their prices after weeks of record highs.

The supermarket's price cut takes its petrol down to 115.9p a litre - or £5.27 a gallon - while its diesel will drop 1p to 118.9p a litre.

Within hours Shell followed suit by cutting 2p off both its petrol and diesel prices.

 

Families squeezed even harder as petrol hits new record price while wholesale prices fall

Motorists are being ripped off at the pumps as petrol prices reach a record high while 'profiteering' retailers fail to pass on a 2p fall in the wholesale cost of fuel.

Oil giants and supermarkets are under fire from the AA for 'dragging their heels' in passing on the benefits of falling prices to families who are now paying an average £25 a month more to fill their two cars than at the beginning of the year.

Supermarkets are key as their price-cuts cuts traditionally force forecourts supplied by the major oil companies to cut theirs.

The rises have even given the cash-strapped new Lib-Con coalition government a 1p a litre tax windfall from the revenue cash raised from VAT.

The AA said the average price of petrol in the UK has gone up to a record high of 121.61p a litre - £5.53 a gallon-  at a time when the wholesale cost of petrol in north west Europe has gone down by the equivalent of 2p a litre.

But this decrease has not been passed on to UK drivers, who have seen petrol prices rise from 109.88p a litre at the beginning of the year - a rise of 11.73p a litre (or 53p a gallon).

In the same period, the price of a litre of diesel has gone up from 111.52p to 123.03p - a rise of 11.51p

The AA said the rise to record levels had added £5.87 to the cost of filling a typical 50-litre petrol tank of a family saloon such as a Ford Mondeo and had pushed up the monthly petrol costs for a family with two cars by £24.91 - from £233.32 in January to £258.23 now.

Recent tax rises have  also helped fuel the record pump prices.In his recent Budget, former Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling decided to phase-in a near-3p fuel duty rise  in three stages. From April 1 drivers paid an extra 1p a litre, with a further 1p in October and another 0.76p next January.

In a shot across the bows to new Tory Transport Secretary Philip Hammond, the AA report noted:'The new Government, perhaps looking at further increases in fuel duty to reduce the deficit, might like to take into account the extra VAT from this year’s rise to record prices. This has generated the equivalent of a yet another 1p increase in fuel duty .'

AA president Edmund King said: 'After a week of lower wholesale prices, drivers would consider it unacceptable profiteering if at least some of the saving wasn't passed on to them."

"We know that record prices have squeezed profit margins for many independent retailers but would urge them to pass on whatever savings they can, partly because a fall in pump prices may bring back some of the 10-20% lost custom in recent months.

"As for the supermarkets, we hope that they will pass on savings directly to the pump and not use them to discount elsewhere."

Mr King said volatility in the market meant motorists should be prepared for wholesale prices to go back up again.

It comes after oil giants announced massive rises in  profits last month.

Oil giant BP enjoyed a  135per cent rise in profits for the first quarter of this year - earning at the rate of  £463 a second. Profits hit £3.6 billion  in the first three months of 2010 - more than double the level last year.

It works out at £40million a day, and £1.6million  an hour and £2,777 a minute.

Arch rivals and  Europe's largest oil company Royal Dutch Shell unveiled a 49 per cent surge in first-quarter profits with  earnings of £3.2 billion for the first three months of the year.

 

Wonderful sentiment about illegal immigration!

SNOPES: CORRECTLY ATTRIBUTED

I find this very interesting reading; so let's keep it going if you agree. It only takes a few days on the Internet and this will have reached 75% of the public in the U.S.A. Seniors need to stand up for what is right, not what the politicians want or big Corporations want.

This was sent to Mr. Rand, who is the Executive Director of AARP.

THIS LADY NOT ONLY HAS A GRASP OF 'THE SITUATION' BUT AN INCREDIBLE COMMAND OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE!

Dear Mr. Rand,

Recently you sent us a letter encouraging us to renew our lapsed membership in AARP by the requested date. I know it is not what you were looking for, but this is the most honest response I can give you. Our gap in coverage is merely a microscopic symptom of the real problem, a deepening lack of faith.

While we have proudly maintained our membership for several years and have long admired the AARP goals and principles, regrettably, we can no longer endorse it's abdication of our values. Your letter specifically stated that we can count on AARP to speak up for our rights, yet the voice we hear is not ours. Your offer of being kept up to date on important issues through DIVIDED WE FAIL presents neither an impartial view nor the one we have come to embrace. We do believe that when two parties agree all the time on everything presented to them, one is probably not necessary. But, when the opinions and long term goals are diametrically opposed, the divorce is imminent. This is the philosophy which spawned our 200 years of government.

Once upon a time, we looked forward to being part of the senior demographic. We also looked to AARP to provide certain benefits and give our voice a power we could not possibly hope to achieve on our own. AARP gave us a sense of belonging which we no longer enjoy. The Socialist politics practiced by the Obama administration and empowered by AARP serves only to raise the blood pressure my medical insurance strives to contain. Clearly a conflict of interest there!

We do not understand the AARP posture, feel greatly betrayed by the guiding forces that we expected to map out our senior years and leave your ranks with a great sense of regret. We mitigate that disappointment with the relief of knowing that we are not contributing to the problem anymore by renewing our membership. There are numerous other organizations which offer discounts without threatening our way of life or offending our sensibilities.

This Presidential Administration scares the living daylights out of us. Not just for ourselves, but for our proud and bloodstained heritage. But even more importantly for our children and grandchildren. Washington has rendered Soylent Green a prophetic cautionary tale rather than a nonfiction scare tactic. I have never in my life endorsed any militant or radical groups, yet now I find myself listening to them. I don't have to agree with them to appreciate the fear which birthed their existence. Their borderline insanity presents little more than a balance to the voice of the Socialist mindset in power. Perhaps I became American by a great stroke of luck in some cosmic uterine lottery, but in my adulthood I CHOOSE to embrace it and nurture the freedoms it represents as well as the responsibilities it requires.

Your website generously offers us the opportunity to receive all communication in Spanish. ARE YOU KIDDING??? Someone has broken into our 'house', invaded our home without our invitation or consent. The President has insisted we keep the perpetrator in comfort and learn the perp language so we can communicate our reluctant welcome to them.

I DON'T choose to welcome them.

I DON'T choose to support them.

I DON'T choose to educate them.

I DON'T choose to medicate them, pay for their food or clothing.

American home invaders get arrested.

Please explain to me why foreign lawbreakers can enjoy privileges on American soil that Americans do not get?

Why do some immigrants have to play the game to be welcomed and others only have to break & enter to be welcomed?

We travel for a living. Walt hauls horses all over this great country, averaging over 10,000 miles a month when he is out there. He meets more people than a politician on caffeine overdose. Of all the many good folks he enjoyed on this last 10,000 miles, this trip yielded only ONE supporter of the current administration. One of us is out of touch with mainstream America . Since our poll is conducted without funding, I have more faith in it than one which is power driven.

We have decided to forward this to everyone on our mailing list, and will encourage them to do the same. With several hundred in my address book, I have every faith that the eventual exponential factor will make a credible statement to you.

I am disappointed.

I am scared.

I am MAD and I'm NOT gonna take it anymore!

Walt & Cyndy
Miller Farms Equine Transport

ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO KEEP THIS MOVING FORWARD.

All The Best,

Billy McKee
ButterKee Books
Nashville, TN
 

BP doubles profits to £3.6bn... as motorists suffer record petrol prices

Oil giant BP today said profits surged by 135 per cent to £3.6 billion in the first three months of 2010 - more than double the level last year.

The rise comes after the price of crude oil was pushed higher by recovery hopes for the global economy and market speculation.

While it is good news for the profits of the oil majors, the surge in crude and the weaker pound have hit motorists, with average petrol prices now at record highs.

Today's results compare with the nadir of the recession in the first quarter of 2009, when crude prices averaged just over $41 a barrel, although a year later this figure stands at an average $76.

BP's performance was much higher than City forecasts after profits in exploration and production nearly doubled to £5.36 billion.

In a recent strategy update, BP said it would begin production on 42 major projects worldwide in the next five years as existing fields decline, and boost profits by taking more costs out of the business.

In refining and marketing, where margins have been squeezed due to over capacity, first quarter profits fell 33 per cent to £471.6 million, although even this figure was higher than the previous three-month period.

BP's recent performance has been overshadowed by last week's explosion at Deepwater Horizon, the BP-operated rig in the Gulf of Mexico.

Eleven of the 126 workers on board at the time are missing and presumed dead, while oil is leaking from the sunken rig and spreading towards the US coast.

Last night, the oil slick covered an area 48 miles long by 39 miles wide. BP has mobilised two rigs to drill a relief well if needed, which could help redirect the oil, but the work could take weeks to complete.

The Deepwater Horizon was drilling about 40 miles off the delta of the Mississippi River when it exploded.

BP chief executive Tony Hayward said improved weather conditions were helping the recovery effort, adding: 'This, combined with the light and thin oil we are dealing with, has further increased our confidence that we can tackle this spill offshore.'

Where the most expensive petrol stations are located.

We've provided the 10 cheapest - what about the current most expensive.

The most expensive stations in the UK

1. Stromness, Orkney Islands (130.9p)
2. Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire (130.9p)
3. Blackburn, Lancashire (130.9p)
4. Isle Of Mull, Argyll (130.9p)
5. Isle Of Islay, Argyll (130.3p)
6. Dunmow, Essex (130p)
7. Tighnabruaich, Argyll (129.9p)
8. Kirkwall, Orkney Islands (129.9p)
9. Isle Of Arran, North Ayrshire (129.9p)
10. Burnham-on-crouch, Essex (129.9p)
11. Achnasheen, Ross-shire (129.9p)
12. Quendale, Shetland Islands (129.9p)
13. Isle Of Benbecula, Western Isles (129.9p)

Source: PetrolPrices.com

The 10 current cheapest petrol stations in the UK

Drivers in southern England were hit with record high petrol prices this Easter weekend, according to the AA. Average UK prices reached 119.46p a litre, but some parts of southern England are already above the 119.7p record of July 2008.

A litre of petrol is now 9.6p more expensive than at the start of the year, adding £4.80 the cost of a typical 50-litre refill. A 1p rise in fuel duty came in on April 1 and further rises are expected in October and January.

However, it is still possible to buy petrol for 114.9p a litre, although it helps if you live in Scotland or Yorkshire, and buy your petrol from a supermarket. Here we list the ten cheapest stations in the UK to buy unleaded petrol – and where the most expensive stations are located. (There are 18 stations still charging 114.9p so they are all in joint-first place.)

1. Asda, Saint Augustin Way, Grantham, Lincolnshire (114.9p)
2. Asda, Fullerton Road, Rothes Mills, Glenrothes, Fife (114.9p)
3. Asda, Atherleigh Way, Leigh, Lancashire (114.9p)
4. Sainsburys, Plas Coch Road, Wrexham, Clwyd (114.9p)
5. Kirk Road Service Station, Kirk Road, Wishaw, Lanarkshire (114.9p)
6. Sainsburys, Wetherby Road, Harrogate, North
Yorkshire (114.9p)
7. Sainsburys, Crown Road, Enfield, Middlesex (114.9p)
8. Shell Shaws, Nether Auldhouse Road, Glasgow (114.9p)
9. Leeds Harrogate Express, Harrogate Road, Leeds, West Yorkshire (114.9p)
10. Sainsburys, South Groathill Avenue, Edinburgh (114.9p)
11. MRH Warwick Road, Kenilworth Warwickshire (114.9p)
12. Asda, Bugsbys Way, Charlton, London (114.9p)
13. Cooper Brothers, Overtown Road, Newmains, Wishaw, Lanarkshire (114.9p)
14. Tesco, Woodfield Way, Balby, Doncaster, South
Yorkshire (114.9p)
15. Sainsburys, East Parade, Keighley, West Yorkshire (114.9p)
16. Shell Newmains, Main Street, Newmains, Wishaw, Lanarkshire (114.9p)
17. Sainsburys, Heron Gate, Hankridge Farm, Taunton, Somerset (114.9p)
18. Sainsburys, Civic Way, Swadlincote, Derbyshire (114.9p)

Source: PetrolPrices.com

Petrol to hit 120p a litre, as motorists mugged by oil companies

Petrol is due to hit a record of 120p a litre in a matter of days, even though the price of oil is little more than half the levels it was at its peak, the AA motoring group has warned.

Senior MPs and motoring groups said that oil companies were "mugging motorists on the forecourt" and urged Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, to delay next month's planned increase in petrol duty as well as investigate why drivers were paying so much.

The average petrol price across the country is 115.9p for a litre of unleaded and 116.6p for a litre of diesel, according to Petrolprices.com. However, the Treasury is due to add a further 3p on April 1.

Even without this increase the price at forecourts is due to hit 120p very soon, according to the AA. This would overtake the previous high of 119.7p, which motorists suffered from in July 2008.

At the time the high price of petrol was blamed on the surging price of crude oil, the key raw material in petrol, which within weeks of the record petrol price hit its own record of $147 a barrel.

However, crude oil is now $78 a barrel and there are more than 250 petrol stations charging more than 120p a litre for unleaded and diesel.

Lindsay Hoyle, the senior Labour MP on the Business Select Committee, said: "This is a complete disgrace. Yes, crude oil has gone up this year, but nothing like the rise in petrol prices. Motorists are being legally mugged at the forecourt by petrol companies."

The AA said petrol prices were due to go not because of the sharp increase in wholesale gasoline – crude oil that has been refined and ready to be distributed to petrol stations. Since the end of January the price of wholesale gasoline, or petrol, has climbed 17 per cent.

It said it was unsure why there had been such a sharp increase, suggesting that market speculators were mostly to blame, along with a shortage of supply with some refiners closing their sites as a result of the recession. The weak pound had also forced up the price, because petrol is bought in dollars. The AA gave warning that the increase would almost certainly be passed onto motorists in the form of higher retail prices in a matter of days.

Edmund King, the AA's president, said: "The UK is barely out of recession yet petrol prices threaten to rise to record prices seen during the boom of 2008 – shortly before the collapse into recession. If families, drivers on fixed incomes and those on low pay were unable to cope with record prices then, they are even less likely now."

"Before this wholesale price surge works it way through to consumer spending and hits economic revival, the AA believes the Government should look at what is behind it. With refiners in Europe closing sites or looking to sell them, soaring wholesale prices could drive down demand and weaken the sector further."

Rival motoring organisation the RAC warned the cost of filling the average car's tank was now £364 a year more expensive than in the previous 12 months and demanded that Mr Darling consider delaying next months' duty increase.

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) said the rising price of petrol was "tremendously damaging" with a third of all hauliers considering laying off workers during the first half of this year to cope with high prices.

"Events are conspiring against us. It's not just the rise in VAT at the start of this year, there is also the higher duty to consider and there is now the price of oil. We are in a perfect storm," said Liam Northfield, a spokesman for the FTA.

In the summer of 2008, when petrol prices hit their record level, duty was 50.35p a litre. Since then it has climbed to 56.19p, with it due to hit 59p next month.

Nigel Evans, the Conservative MP, said: "The motorist really should be benefiting from lower prices than in 2008; the commodity price is much lower than then.

"Motorists are being clobbered by a combination of speculators and Government taxes. Either way 115p a litre is an awful high price for a great number of people. We need an investigation to find out why the pump price is so high."

Platts, acknowledged to be the leading analysts in the oil market, said that there were a number of reasons why the price of imported petrol had jumped, but insisted speculators were not to blame.

At the end of winter, petrol has to be refined differently to make it less volatile to stop "engine lock", when a car can stop running. "There is a chemical basis why it costs more at this time of year," said Simon Thorne, a manager at Platts.

He added that refiners, both in Europe and America, had cut back in the face of the recession, leading to a fall in supply. This in turn had pushed up prices.

Most petrol retailers also refinery companies or exploration arms, meaning that they will benefit from high wholesale prices, even if they lose out at the petrol pumps and vice versa.

Though BP's profits fell by 45 per cent last year, on the back of crude oil price falls, it still managed to record a pre-tax profit of £8.75 billion.

Chris Hunt, at the UK Petrol Industry Association, which represents oil refiners, said that it was "nonsense" for anyone to blame oil companies for the high price of petrol.

"Back in 1974 there were 16 refineries and 20,000 service stations in Britain. There are now 8 refineries and 9,000 petrol stations. If we were profiteering, why would all these be shutting down?"

He said the weak pound was the main reason why prices had risen.

 

 

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How to cut your petrol costs

How to cut your petrol costs: Rising petrol prices have eaten into household budgets for millions of Brito.. http://bz9.cc/0whk

\"We woz brung up propur\"

\"We woz brung up propur\": WE WAS BRUNG UP PROPER !! :-) \"And we never had a whole Mars bar until 1993.. http://bz9.cc/0w7J