Om cost hike on fuel duty rise?
Page 12

If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
THE INDUSTRY is bracing itself for an increase in annual costs of nearly £2m if the government goes ahead with plans to increase fuel duty next month.
In his April Budget, Chancellor Gordon Brown announced he would postpone an inflation-linked increase of almost 1.3p/lit for diesel duty until October,though this would be reviewed if the world oil price remained unstable (CM 17 April).
Hauliers in South Wales have warned that a price rise could see them manning the barricades again in a repeat of 2000's fuel protests.
Trade associations say the price hike is inevitable.A spokeswoman for the FTA says:"Crude oil prices have remained consistently higher than at the time of the Budget in April. As far as we can see, the market is still volatile."
She adds that the increase will add £1.72m a year to industry costs.
RHA chief executive Roger King describes the rise as "another nail in the coffin of competitiveness."
A spokesman for the Treasury says: "The presumption is that it will go up but a decision has not yet been made."