THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATS have announced they will table a motion today (Monday, April 13) in Westminster to cut fuel duty as Parliament returns from Easter recess, demanding an immediate 10p cut to help motorists struggling with the fallout of the conflict in Iran.
It comes as new analysis by the party reveals that Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to rake in almost £500m in extra tax revenue during the Senedd elections campaign period, as soaring global oil prices pad the Treasury’s coffers through the Energy Profits Levy.
The Liberal Democrats called on the Chancellor to use this windfall now to cut fuel duty or face a reckoning at the ballot box from voters on May 7.
The Liberal Democrat motion will call for this “windfall” to be used to fund an emergency 10p-a-litre cut in fuel duty, which would save the average driver 12p per litre at the pump when VAT is included, or £6.60 per 55ltr tank. The party is also calling for a broader transport rescue package, including a reduction in the cap on bus fares and a cut in rail fares.
Commenting, Welsh Liberal Democrat Westminster spokesperson David Chadwick MP said: “Soaring prices at the pump are hitting people in the pocket at a time when many were already struggling.
“This is especially true in rural parts of Wales like the one I represent, where there is little alternative to car-based transport.
“It is deeply unfair that the Treasury is cashing in millions of pounds in extra tax revenue while families across Wales feel the pinch and small businesses are driven to the wall.
“The Chancellor is set to make an unexpected windfall of almost £500m during the Senedd election campaign period alone. Rachel Reeves and Labour has a choice: use this unexpected windfall to help motorists now, or face a reckoning at the ballot box on May 7.
“Unlike Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage who backed this war from the start, the Liberal Democrats will keep standing up for families hit in the pocket by Donald Trump’s recklessness.”
