SNP press Chancellor over fuel duty rise

Speaking in advance of a protest over fuel prices by hauliers in Scotland, SNP Treasury spokesperson, Stewart Hosie MP, has restated demands for the Chancellor ditch the Treasury’s planned October 2p fuel duty increase.

Writing to all Labour MPs, Mr Hosie also restated calls for the onshore windfall from fuel tax to be used for a fuel duty regulator, a proposal supported by the Road Haulage Association (RHA), and for the offshore oil windfall to be used for a Norwegian style oil fund.

Mr Hosie said:

"Alistair Darling is living on a different planet if he thinks that he can still go ahead with his 2p hike in fuel duty.

"People are struggling to make ends meet now, and the Chancellor must ditch his planned increase without delay.

"With the price of oil soaring, the case for introducing a fuel duty regulator is overwhelming, and we must protect our economy and public services against these shocks by introducing some stability at the pumps.

"While the onshore windfall from fuel tax must be used for a fuel duty regulator to protect motorists at the pump, our offshore oil windfall must also be invested into a Norwegian style oil fund.

"Malcolm Wicks, the UK Energy Minister, has already conceded that an Oil Fund is an ‘attractive’ idea – and now we need action to make that a reality. "Scotland cannot allow another thirty years of oil production to be wasted like the last three decades. The Scottish Government must have access to our share of the revenues from the North Sea to invest them for the future."