Fuel prices to rise as motorist hit with 2p duty increase

In November, David Simons said 'I note that fuel prices in the UK rise when the price of oil rises but fails to drop when the price of oil drops.' I have also noted this and find it absolutely scandalous. At its price peak of £ 1.30 odd for a litre of diesel, the price per barrell of oil was being quoted at over $ 140 per barrell. It is now less than $40 per barrell, an amazing 71% collapse over 2 months. Very little change at the pumps despite this. Either the petrol companies are profiteering or the Government is pulling our trousers down. I suspect that both is happening. Currency fluctuation can not explain all of it. Petrol Company bosses, Government Ministers, Bankers, they should alll be made to feel the pain that the man on the street has to endure.

With the country in deep recession and the banks (RBOS and Loydds) getting bailed out with BILLIONS of pounds of our money, whose pockets do you think Alistair Darling is going to be pillaging to rescue the very instituitions that got us into this mess.

The next issue that will be used to steal more of our hard earned cash will be to bail out the car industries.

The way things are going a trip to the shops and back will cost a king's ransom ................. still at least it will slow down Peak Oil for a month or two.

Chris

what on earth did you expect from the worst ex chancellor we have ever had
his tax changes are so devious he even confuses his own people,let alone us

Adding more money to fuel is counter productive, because the unnecessary jouneys have been eliminated by the recession. If the government wants to raise revenues cut the bureaucratic jobs and give them jobs that improve the lives of others

Wear i live in th western isles on the isle of lewis the filling stations are very quick to put prices up but not keen to put them down but do you want to know somthing about our lovly chanceller he is from these islands or at least has family up here.The cost of a litre of petrol up hear is back up to a pound or over a litre not that it went much under the lowest it went to was 97.9 and its well over apound for deisel.This goverment do not have clue they just keep taxing the motorist all the time if its not fuel its road tax whitch wont be helping the car industry in the uk with there stupid tax bands.

J R Ewing
J. R. Ewing.
**Whether Boris is right or wrong, there's no need to degenerate into this kind of abuse and Boris himself will state that though he & I only agree on certain aspects of each others points of view we nevertheless respect each others beliefs.**

Are you serious, are you having a laugh?

A few of Boris' kind words, , , ,

1]..What a sophisticated and well argued point. How enlightening.

2]..nil knowledge stoked by other ill-informed bloggers.

3]..many posts show such an astounding ignorance of how the world works

4]..these people will never be more than cyber soap box ranters

5]..("look, I done a post - aren't I clever hur hur hur!").

6]..you and your like confuse 'thick skinned' with 'thick' - I am the former and you appear to be the latter.

7]..hard to take seriously the fake superior/pompous tone

8]..I don't like to criticise an unwell man (note* he did though)

9]..set your tiny mind straight

10]..(I find I am quite capable of using a computer without getting too grubby - maybe you in your DOM persona are not?)

11]..Happy now weirdo?

12]..ignorance exhibited by some of these fools who think that their soap-box rants are somehow of any value.

13].. but why should fools be tolerated?

14]..the ignorance of some of the posters here

15]..off for his Goosestep in the snow

16]..oh dear, it's all the fault of the immigrants isn't it

17]..stoke the furnaces to keep you warm you sad loser?

18]..hilarious in your stupidity

19]..ill informed and pompous.

20]..duh!

21]..you machine gunning the dreaded immigrants

22]..you nasty little twerp.

23]..Get back in the pond.

24]..you tedious little man

25]..fellow member of the Onanists Club (you do it - he watches?)

26]..devoid of any intellect you really are!

27]..What's the next subject for you parade your ignorance of?

28]..(*Boris take on the refinery strikes) conversing with White Supremacists

29]..let the Nazi get away with it (Mr Handbrake I assume).

30]..easier than working to make a success of your life isn't it?

31]..How can it be free? Does the oil just come out of the ground, refine itself and throw itself into the cars?

32]..Wrong.

If a person keeps poking a sleeping lion he will get bitten. Eventually.
I have written on these pages a few times over the years and have never "crossed-swords" with Boris.
I do agree with most other posters that to post anything is likely to receive the "Boris-Backlash" so will not bother.
Shame really as these pages are very informative and sometimes bring a smile or two.

I said when New labour took over as Government that it would all end as the last labour administations From H Wilson to J Callaghan. Wilson Devalued The Pound twice in a short time. J Callaghan gave us the winter of discontent Dustbins unemptied bodies unburied and to cap it all 29% inflation then this lot said that they had brought inflation down. When the Conservatives had left them with already low inflation, but as usual Labour bogged it all up with G Brown's stealth taxes, rises in car tax which he said was to help the environment. Global warming my eye another means of squeezing money from the taxpayer. For goodness sake let us pull out of this money drain called the EU and let us become once again masters of our own country. Come On! People of Great Britain WAKE UP before it's too late. I would rather be aSubject of Her Majesty the Queen her heirs and successors than a citizen of The Union of Soviet Socialist Europe
Posted by Angry at This Government 13/02/2009 14:15pm

11138 Spank........................
Whether Boris is right or wrong, there's no need to degenerate into this kind of
abuse and Boris himself will state that though he & I only agree on certain aspects of each others points of view we nevertheless respect each others
beliefs.
Boris I distance myself fully from 11138's posting and believe that he/she might well be a rank outsider, quite content to run with the fox and the hounds when it suits them.

11138
Thank$. Now grow up.

11139
Wrong. Independent retailers most often buy on a daily Platts deal. The price will be based on the previous day's $/tonne price for mid or high CIF grades out of Rotterdam with the exchange rate applicable that day. The idea that "fuel prices take around six weeks to filter through" is a generalisation based on the barrel price. Retailer's buying prices are immediately impacted by exchange rate fluctuations.

.
The fuel prices take around six weeks to filter through, so the strength or weakness of the £ or $ today will be seen at the pump at the end of March.

11136
Steve, buying price tomorrow (assuming c.2ppl delivery cost) is 90.482ppl for unleaded and 92.39ppl for Derv. So it looks as though retailers are subsidising the lack of margin on unleaded by making more on Derv. £ did poorly against the $ yesterday too.

Well...the 0.4p incrase after the VAT cut/duty increase didn't stay for long as it then was quickly rounded up to xx.9p again. CAn anyone explain why diesel is now over £1 a litre again with the oil price still down (and the pound has steadied against the $$) ?

11133

Boo, exchange rate and Duty increases. Getting repetitive now.

11132
Boo, I don't see the confrontation - sorry if you don't like it when the facts don't fit your argument - but that's all it is - nothing personal. Your claim that prices had increased for 7 weeks or 4 weeks is wrong. As I showed in my post, prices increased in the last week of January and have continued to do so. Simply saying that prices have increased by X amount over 4 weeks isn't the same as saying that prices increased 4 weeks ago.
Your point about averages supermarket prices is simply wrong. You also still haven't said where in the country prices rose fastest. Anyway, this argument is somwhat trivial - the nub is that you exaggerated or misrepresented the facts in order to make a point.
What is rather enlightening is your view of Venezuela - clearly a country you know little about. Again, I don't know why you think I'm angry - nor do I see the sensationalism. I don't find your disdain for ordinary people (implied by your support for the use of a Nation's wealth to create an unhealthy and unfair society) particularly attractive - but I'm not going to get angry about it. If anything, your statement "No harm in using something if it is virtually free." is hilarious and revealing. How can it be free? Does the oil just come out of the ground, refine itself and throw itself into the cars? The Government spends BILLIONS supporting cheap fuel! Money that could be much better spent.
The Hummer comment was a collective 'your' as in one's - it is a common vehicle in Venezuela.
Anyway, you might be interested in the following, from the Guardian in 2008:

"There is a world where oil costs $100 a barrel, where motorists wince as they fill up the tank and where energy efficiency is a mantra.

And then there is Venezuela. At a Caracas petrol station last week, Gloria Padron, a paediatrician, ticked off items that would cost about the same as the 60 litres of fuel gurgling into her Land Cruiser.

"Let me think. A Magnum ice cream. A cup of coffee. A cheese and ham arepa [sandwich]. Small stuff like that. Can't say I've ever really thought about the price. Why would you?"

When a litre costs 0.7p, and filling the tank of a 4x4 costs 42p, it is a fair question. Petrol is so cheap here - reputedly the cheapest in the world - as to be almost free. Even under the artificially overvalued official exchange rate, petrol is 45 times cheaper than in Britain.

So while oil-importing nations appeal for relief (George Bush called in vain this week on Saudi Arabia to increase its output so as to bear down on prices), major exporters such as Venezuela bask in their immunity from the petroinflationary pain. Venezuela has the seventh-largest oil reserves in the world, and petrol is lavishly subsidised.

"If it gives us nothing else, at least the government lets us have our own petrol this cheap," said Padron, 44, revving her engine. "It may be crazy and have no logic, but I'm not complaining. Nobody is."

That is the problem. The subsidy warps the economy, drains government coffers, rips off the poor, pollutes the air and paralyses cities with traffic jams. Yet it is hugely popular and the government dares not end the insanity.

The phenomenon is common to oil producers such as Burma, Indonesia, Iran and Nigeria: their people feel cheap petrol is a birthright and tend to revolt if the price rises.

The era of $100 barrels has magnified the distortion, because governments are obliged to forfeit windfall revenues to divert ever-greater quantities of oil to domestic markets.

"It is difficult to go from this system to something more rational," said Mark Weisbrot, an economist with the Washington-based Centre for Economic and Policy Research. "People think they know how cheap the oil is, and that it is theirs. It is very deep in the culture."

Venezuela, a major oil producer which introduced the subsidy as a populist measure in the 1940s, is probably the most extreme case of a gas-guzzling dream becoming a policy nightmare.

A lack of rigs and other problems has reduced the output of the state oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, just as domestic consumption has soared to 780,000 barrels a day. The subsidy costs the government around £4.5bn annually. It also encourages a brisk trade in contraband petrol across the Colombian border, where prices are higher.

A consumer boom has doubled the number of cars on Venezuela's roads, with 500,000 sold last year alone. "None of the advertisements talk about fuel efficiency," said Daniel Guerra, the manager of a Ferrari dealership in Caracas. "People have been spoiled for so long with the subsidy that when it comes time for a reality check they don't understand."

As a result, streets are filled with new SUVs, including Humvees, as well as wheezing 70s-era sedans, aggravating smog and gridlock.

Some economists call the subsidy "Hood Robin", because it steals from the poor and gives to the rich by favouring relatively wealthy car owners above the poor who rely on public transport.

President Hugo Chávez railed against it last year, going so far as to label the inequity "disgusting". He also chided western countries for consuming so much oil and depleting a non-renewable resource. The self-styled revolutionary socialist, however, has not followed through on his promise to raise prices at home.

"That might make economic sense, but could risk his already dwindling support," said Michael Shifter, an analyst with the Inter-American Dialogue thinktank. "In a context of growing fissures within his own coalition, it is doubtful Chávez would be too eager to reduce gas subsidies," he said.

When a previous government raised prices in 1989, the resulting riots left hundreds, possibly thousands, dead and destabilised the political system. A price rise now could worsen the galloping 22% rate of inflation by having a knock-on effect on the cost of haulage and public transport. The opposition would also pounce on the move and try to use it against the president in forthcoming regional elections."

//
As the year 2005 has been mentioned, how about this for comparison.

BBC March 2005
"Surely there should be some protests, or at least questioning of candidates during this General Election, now that we have record petrol prices at the pumps ?
The BBC reports:
"Petrol prices at UK pumps have reached their highest-ever levels, according to petrol consultancy Catalyst.
A litre of unleaded petrol now costs 85.6p and some analysts are warning of further increases to come.
The previous record was 85.3p in 2000, when drivers blockaded roads to protest at the soaring costs and government plans to raise taxes on fuel.

Independent March 2005
Motorists face hit from rising oil price By Philip Thornton Friday, 18 March 2005
Car drivers look likely to be hit by an increase in petrol costs because of soaring oil prices, just days after Gordon Brown attempted to placate the motoring lobby by delaying the rise in fuel duty.
Car drivers look likely to be hit by an increase in petrol costs because of soaring oil prices, just days after Gordon Brown attempted to placate the motoring lobby by delaying the rise in fuel duty.
The price of crude oil hit a fresh all-time high on both sides of the Atlantic yesterday, breaking through the $57 (£29.60) a barrel price in New York.

March 2005.
85.3p per litre.
Oil over $57 barrel.

Today Feb 2009
86.9p per litre
Oil under $40 barrel

Something not quite right.

//
Dear Boris, forever in need of confrontation,

Retail petrol and diesel prices rise again
Reuters Published: February 10, 2009 (Yesterday Boris)

Retail petrol prices rose about 5 percent over the past month, the Automobile Association said on Tuesday.
The average petrol price in the UK was 90.10 pence a litre on Tuesday, compared with 85.89 pence on January 6, the lowest price since mid July.
Diesel prices rose more moderately, increasing by about 2.5 percent to 100.64 pence a litre from 98.06 pence on January 6.
"The AA is once again receiving calls from drivers asking why prices are going up and the media in areas like Northern Ireland and Scotland are again reporting motorist anger," AA president Edmund King said in a statement.
"The global economy is in recession, the price of oil is 40 per cent lower than when petrol cost 90p a litre in March 2007, and the pound has strengthened in recent days."

This report backed by the president of the AA clearly states in comparison that prices started to increase from 6 January 2009.
Which rather backs up my previous blog on 4 February which I corrected myself and told you it was 4 weeks previous since prices started to climb.

""Some prices in the UK rose higher than the 'UK average' while others rose at a slower than 'average' rate." That statement doesn't even make sense."
Of course it does. Supermarkets had the lowest pump prices when they started a mini price war to attract shoppers for the Christmas rush.
They are now amongst the highest pump prices. This would indicate an "above average" increase.
You have already answered yourself regarding 'average'.

"Stupidly subsidised? Have you seen the ridiculous wasteful cars driven because fuel is so cheap?"
Why stupidly subsidised? No harm in using something if it is virtually free. Why does this make you so angry? Is it because deep down you also know the pump prices in the UK are ridiculously high in taxes, duty and stealth.

"The smog, the pollution, the traffic."
Have you never sat in a London rush hour? Same thing.

"It's a false market that will benefit no-one"
It seems to benefit their population rather well actually.

Boo>>" Imagine if people showed just a small percentage of that passion in this country?
I am not saying strike and fight each other but a more concentrated effort to apply pressure to this inept leadership."
Boris>>""I for one wouldn't want to see the "passion" (rioting and death)""
(Pretty Polly, pretty Polly) Why all the sensationalism?

Your assumption of cars only doing 25mpg and the assumption that I own a Hummer. I have checked the drive this morning and I still own a Peugeot, which does considerably more than 25mpg.
If you do know of a Hummer that can reach 25mpg please let me know, as this could be a huge money-spinner.

11129 & 11130
Boo
The data you quote is nearly 4 YEARS out of date - it is from March 2005! Why copy and paste it now as if it's relevant? Better to have the actual information and do the sums yourself I think.
"Average is not a means, it is an average.". Yes, I know average is not the same as mean - what's the relevance?
"Some prices in the UK rose higher than the 'UK average' while others rose at a slower than 'average' rate." That statement doesn't even make sense. The average we are talking about is the average price at a point in time. By definition, some prices are above and some below the average. If prices rise the average goes up. You seem to be mixing up rates of increase and what the average price is at any one time. Anyway, as I previously asked, where did prices rise fastest.
I don't know what part of the AA you're looking at (something from 2005 maybe?). Here's a direct quote from their January 2009 report:
"Unleaded prices have fallen by 2.9 ppl from 89.5ppl to 86.6ppl. Diesel prices have fallen by 3.2ppl, from 101.9ppl to 98.7ppl. The price difference between unleaded and diesel has fallen from 12.4ppl to 12.1ppl

London, East Anglia and the South West recorded the highest price for unleaded at 87ppl. The North West recorded the lowest price for unleaded at 86.1ppl. Wales recorded the highest diesel price at 99.3ppl. Yorkshire and Humberside have the cheapest diesel at 98.1ppl.

Supermarket prices for unleaded also fell over the month by 4ppl to 84.3ppl. The gap between supermarket prices and the UK average for unleaded has risen to 2.3ppl.

Overseas prices have also fallen. The UK has the thirteenth highest unleaded price in Europe and the fifth highest diesel price."

Stupidly subsidised? Have you seen the ridiculous wasteful cars driven because fuel is so cheap? The smog, the pollution, the traffic. It's a false market that will benefit no-one and I for one wouldn't want to see the "passion" (rioting and death) here simply because it got more expensive to fill up your Hummer.

//
Boris I almost forgot,

"Fuel prices started rising about 4 weeks ago, my apologies." No they didn't - as already shown."
FACTS taken from the AA, prices started rising on 10 January.
I posted on 4 February so that makes the increase 3 weeks and 4 days previous. Pretty close.
I don't know where you get YOUR facts. You were "wide of the mark".

//

Boris, my entertaining friend,
"don't know where you get your numbers/facts from but they seem to be wide of the mark."
Prices taken from CNN Money: Global gas prices.
Netherlands Amsterdam $6.48
Norway Oslo $6.27
Italy Milan $5.96
Denmark Copenhagen $5.93
Belgium Brussels $5.91
Sweden Stockholm $5.80
United Kingdom London $5.79
Germany Frankfurt $5.57
France Paris $5.54
Portugal Lisbon $5.35
Hungary Budapest $4.94
Luxembourg $4.82
Croatia Zagreb $4.81
Ireland Dublin $4.78
Switzerland Geneva $4.74
Spain Madrid $4.55
Japan Tokyo $4.24
Czech Republic Prague $4.19
Romania Bucharest $4.09
Andorra $4.08
Estonia Tallinn $3.62
Bulgaria Sofia $3.52
Brazil Brasilia $3.12
Cuba Havana $3.03
Taiwan Taipei $2.84
Lebanon Beirut $2.63
South Africa Johannesburg $2.62
Nicaragua Managua $2.61
Panama Panama City $2.19
Russia Moscow $2.10
Puerto Rico San Juan $1.74
Saudi Arabia Riyadh $0.91
Kuwait Kuwait City $0.78
Egypt Cairo $0.65
Nigeria Lagos $0.38
Venezuela Caracas $0.12
I would not say "wide". I think "very accurate" is the phrase.

Average is not a means, it is an average.
Some prices in the UK rose higher than the 'UK average' while others rose at a slower than 'average' rate.
Not everything revolves around Petrol prices.com. There are other sources of information widely available and at the moment the Internet is the most widely used.
Why base you example on 25mpg? Why not 60mpg or 70mpg as most fuel efficient cars are more than capable. You really would get over twice as far.

Why stupidly subsidised in Venezuela?
There were recently strikes and riots because their government decided to raise the price to $0.12, up 2 US cents. Imagine if people showed just a small percentage of that passion in this country?
I am not saying strike and fight each other but a more concentrated effort to apply pressure to this inept leadership.

11127
Boo
I don't know where you get your numbers/facts from but they seem to be wide of the mark.
"Fuel prices started rising about 4 weeks ago, my apologies." No they didn't - as already shown.
"However prices rose faster in some areas than others hence an 'average'" What does that mean? Where did prices rise faster? How does that affect the average? The average is arrived at by referencing the range of fuel prices.
"The UK average USD/US gallon is $5.79" No it isn't. Average litre price for unleaded today (taken from this site) is 90.1 ppl. About the best exchange rate you'll get for your £ is $1.4341 - so that makes a US gallon $4.89. Even at the headline rate of $1.4806 (which you couldn't get) the result is only $5.05.
"For the price of one fill up in the UK, you could buy enough fuel in Venezeula and drive around the world." Poetic licence I suppose. Nearer to 13,400 miles based on 25mpg (which the vehicles in Venezuela using stupidly subsidised gasoline would struggle to achieve).

//
B t P O
Although the main discussion has remained in the peak oil backyard many people still feel as if the fuel prices in this country are excessively high.
We are all aware of the threat of oil peaking in the near or distant future or even that we have already passed that particular point. Who knows?
What is clear is oil will not last forever.
What is unclear is higher pricing in the UK.
Averagely speaking, lets look at the average price of petrol on a global scale.
Taken from 36 countries including the lowest in the world Venezuela ($0.12) also including Taiwan, Brazil, Kuwait, Russia, Andorra, Luxemburg, Italy and the highest in the world Netherlands($6.48) plus others.
Prices in USD and using US Gallons.
From the 36 countries the average is $3.80 per US gallon.
The UK average USD/US gallon is $5.79
We are among the highest in the world.
For the price of one fill up in the UK, you could buy enough fuel in Venezeula and drive around the world.

I haven't been on this blog in a couple of months and it seems we are still talking about peak oil. LOL

Before we all get angry about the price of oil remember this. We are living in a capitalistic society. Which means if we made £1 billion profit last year we HAVE TO make £3 billion this year.

This is the real reason behind the price of oil. The government and OPEC could put the price down but you are dreaming if you think they will actually do the humane thing.

Just get on with it, work hard, keep the faith and have hope and you will be fine.

11119
The average man in the street knows all about average.
Average height, average size, average weight, average wages, average beer, just about average everything.
How about an average petrol price for Europe in litres.
The highest in Euros is 130.1 (113.6 GBP) Netherlands.
The lowest in Euros is 79.2 (069.13 GBP) Latvia.
The 'average' in Eros's is 099.3 = 86.6p
Today's average in Britain is 89.8p
So now we all know Mr Brown and friends has Britain performing above average in at least one section and seems to be striving to attain a much higher than average position.

Clarkson in a car review last year in The Times:

Of course, you may imagine the government will simply step in and nationalise everything, but to do that, it will have to borrow. And when every government is doing the same thing, there simply won’t be enough cash in the global pot. You can forget Iceland. From what I gather, Spain has had it. Along with Italy, Ireland and very possibly the UK.

It is impossible for someone who scored a U in his economics A-level to grapple with the consequences of all this but I’m told that in simple terms money will cease to function as a meaningful commodity. The binary dots and dashes that fuel the entire system will flicker and die. And without money there will be no business. No means of selling goods. No means of transporting them. No means of making them in the first place even. That’s why another friend of mine has recently sold his London house and bought somewhere in the country . . . with a kitchen garden.

These, as I see them, are the facts. Planet Earth thought it had £10. But it turns out we had only £2. Which means everyone must lose 80% of their wealth. And that’s going to be a problem if you were living on the breadline beforehand.

Eventually, of course, the system will reboot itself, but for a while there will be absolute chaos: riots, lynchings, starvation. It’ll be a world without power or fuel, and with no fuel there’s no way the modern agricultural system can be maintained. Which means there will be no food either. You might like to stop and think about that for a while.

======================================================

It's good to see Clarkson has a clue about the state of the economy too. This is a MINOR insult for someone who was complicit in the ruining of the GLOBAL economy which will, and has, cost lives.

Boris 11119
"I would expect to see more small increases filtering through - unless the £ starts do quite a bit better against the $."
Guess what?
Not only against the Dollar, but against the Euro,and the Yen.
James McCormick, global head of currency and local-market strategy at Citigroup Inc. in London “Policy makers have moved things a lot already. We are probably moving into a short period of rates on hold. The pound may be reaching the bottom.”
Boris, understandably caution is the word of the day, but any signs of a strengthening pound is good news all round.
The only problem now is hoping the Euro does not collapse facing Russian and Eastern European problems which could place massive strains on Western European banks.

**At last, someone in the public eye has the balls to stand up and say what we are all thinking**
(except the "one-eyed Scottish idiot" comment. he really should not discriminate against people with one eye.)

From the press association 06/02/2009 6:50am.
Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson was under fire after reportedly branding Gordon Brown a "one-eyed Scottish idiot". Skip related content
The BBC presenter also accused the Prime Minster of lying, in the comments reportedly made in Australia where he is hosting Top Gear Live, a stage version of the hit TV show.

Mr Brown lost his sight in one eye during after an accident playing rugby as a teenager.

Clarkson, speaking at a press conference in Sydney, compared Mr Brown to Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, after Mr Rudd had just addressed the country on the global financial crisis.

According to The Australian newspaper, he said: "It`s the first time I`ve ever seen a world leader admit we really are in deep s***. He genuinely looked terrified. The poor man, he`s actually seen the books.

"(In the UK) we`ve got this one-eyed Scottish idiot, he keeps telling us everything's fine and he`s saved the world and we know he`s lying, but he`s smooth at telling us."

Scots politicians reacted angrily to the remark. Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray said: "Such a comment is really a reflection on Jeremy Clarkson and speaks for itself.

"Most people here are proud that the Prime Minister is a Scot and believe him to be the right person to get the UK through this global economic crisis."

Gordon Banks, Labour MP for Ochil and South Perthshire, branded the comments "unforgivable".

The BBC and Downing Street declined to comment.

**On that bomshell.......

,,
Fuel prices started rising about 4 weeks ago, my apologies.
However prices rose faster in some areas than others hence an 'average'.

When are we going to realiase that Gordon Brown and the Government is not in Power to help the man/woman in the street, his only concern is for big businesses, why are we surprised of the petrol price increase?
When big business (banks) came to him with a begging bowl he quickly filled it with tax payers money . When pensioners, poor people ask for help with heating bills he refused, now ask yourself which side is he on. Vote them out, stop acting like sheep, be like the French people and react against government unfair policy.

11117

"Fuel in Britain has risen for seven consecutive weeks."

Boo, if that has happened to you, you need to find another gas station - you ARE being 'ripped off'! National average prices for the last 7 weeks - unleaded then Derv, starting with the week just finished:
1) 88.3/99.9
2) 86.4/98.5
3) 87.6/99.8
4) 88.4/100.8
5) 90.3/104.9
6) 91.3/106.9
7) 94.4/108.7
So - a slight increase last week and drops for the previous 6 weeks.

"Why are fuel prices rising?" As has been mentioned before, the price of fuel in this country is governed by the cost of refined product in North West Europe. This HAS been rising - both in actual $/tonne price and because the £ has continued to fare badly against the $. However, many retailers have been taking the margin hit rather than put prices up significantly. Obviously, this can only be done for so long so I would expect to see more small increases filtering through - unless the £ starts do quite a bit better against the $.

No twisting there - just straightforward facts not intended to make anyone feel better (or worse).

So you missed the point about the strengthening dollar then?

Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell to a two-week low on speculation a deepening economic contraction in the U.S., the world's biggest energy consumer, will cause the slump in fuel demand to worsen.

Crude oil for March delivery rose 24 cents, or 0.6 percent, to settle at $41.68 a barrel at 2:46 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices fell 6.5 percent in January, stretching crude's decline to seven consecutive months, the longest on a monthly basis since Nymex trading began in 1983, according to exchange data.

Bearing this in mind, Why are fuel prices rising?

The price of a barrel has fallen for seven consecutive months.
Fuel in Britain has risen for seven consecutive weeks.

Yet some are very happy to twist figures to make themselves feel better while the other 99.9% of the population can smell a rat.

What is the price it should be? The price Venezuela says at 30p a gallon, or what they pay in Scandinavia which is not much different to us now?

The price you want is not necessarily the one the market can support. The sterling's drop, our growing trade deficit and dwindling fossil fuel supplies in the North Sea leave us at a real disadvantage. The only reason it's not higher is because the economies of the world are rapidly imploding.

I cant see the government doing anything to reduce the cost of fuel, the only way they can reduce it is by cutting the duty on it, goign to happen? NO CHANCE, they need money to cover up all their fook ups in the past so the motorist is the easy target with fuel costs, car tax bands, speed camera's etc etc etc.

We wont see fuel at the price it should be ever, even with the reduction recently (well a few months ago) it was still way over the price it should have been and this was due to the duty on it.

The price is creeping up due to the pound/dollar exchange rate. Oil is typically traded in American dollars, so when the pound weakens against the dollar (as it has), purchasing items sold in dollars becomes more expensive, hence the rise in petrol price.

Why is the price of DEISEL/PETROL GRADUALLY CREEPING BACK UP AGAIN???
DO THEY THINK WE DO NOT NOTICE???

Just further proof that no matter if you vote (new Labour) (Tory) (lib Dem) all politicians are the same; Liars, thieves & rogues!!!

BUT TO COME MORE UP TO DATE : - Never buy "TOTAL" Fuels

Re: 11110

Indeed, been a long time, comrade. How times change in such a short time. Wasn't long ago we were fearing $200 oil from an overheating economy.

I recall talking about this Falklands discovery some time ago too. To put it into perspective, that billion barrels isn't large at all. It's at the very low end for a giant field, and certainly no elephant scale one. One billion barrels is equivalent to 2.5 months of oil supply. Hardly saving the world, is it?

Additionally, if any of it is deep water, then it won't be a doddle to fetch. Not in the least. Look at Thunderhorse by BP in the Gulf of Mexico, which has been trying to produce oil for the best part of a decade with a rig that cost tens of billions to produce itself, to say nothing of labour costs.

No, not peak oil now. It was three years ago.

//
RE 11108

KELLERMAN KELLERMAN KELLERMAN

How the devil are you? long time - no post !!

Oil experts in the Falklands have found a massive oil expanse. Possibly over 1bn barrels. They only need $20 Pb to explore further and excavate.

Why do OPEC need $80????

With all these drilling rigs sitting idle it should be a doddle to fetch the oil to the surface.

Peak Oil? Not quite yet.

The Daily Express Friday 30th January 2009.

"MOTORISTS ARE FACING A NEW PETROL RIP OFF WITH RISING PRICES"

We'll have bigger problems in a year if these prices continue. The global rig count is being slashed alarmingly, with many oil and gas rigs in the US being shut down temporarily or permanently and costly deep sea or heavy oil projects being axed thanks to lack of investment capital.

If prices remain under $80/bbl., then pretty soon we won't _have_ the fuel to complain about the cost of. It will be subject to insane price spikes and spot shortages, making any economic recovery doomed to failure. If we come out of this recession/depression soon, then prices need to rise. If we stay in it, then the cost of oil and therefore petrol and heating gas stays low... up until the natural decline rates start hitting the level demand fell too, in which case the cost goes up through the stratosphere to maintain supply and demand.

Gone from 83.9 to 85.9 in my local area in just 2 weeks. Oil prices cheapest they have been for a decade.
Government will not get away with this in the elections, if push comes to shove I will distill my own petrol from raw crude.
Right now the duty should be reduced to compensate for the falling exchange rate and keep prices constant. After all this is the fault of the government.

Surely a global recession would affect all countries so the exchange rate would remain unchanged but no; the s#itty pound continues to fall through the fault of this s#itty government.

I'm sick to death of nipple-feeding my car on overpriced "government fuel pumps" like it's some baby. About time I produce my own fuel.

btw The fuel has been watered down by ethanol so you get 5% less MPG.

11105
Quite easy to answer this question.
At the end of the day and when push comes to shove:-

WE ARE BEING RIPPED OFF!!!!

When the budget comes in April (It's been postponed from March)
FUEL DUTY will be INCREASED yet again.

This government yesterday announced a package to help Britain's ailing motor industry. Had they "zero rated" V.A.T (or at least reduced it to the 5% minimum allowed under E.U.rules) on all British built cars we might have had a better chance!
No possibility of that though they've got expenses to claim.

the price of a barrel of oil continues to head in a generally downward direction and the value of the pound against the dolar has rallied, yet still the price of petrol creeps ever upward. Can and 'expert' please advise what is going on?

The government are incompetents and generally crooked - this we all know! The oil companies have blamed the gov. for the high price of fuel - tax. However the price of oil at the moment is $46 a barrel, a third of what it was 6/7 months ago. Time for the oil companies to cut their price to the supplier-irrespective of whether they are a supermarket or a local garage!
Is it possible that the oil companies are just as disreputable as the gas and electricity suppliers? The gov. are never going to cut the tax - they need it more than ever.
If you were being paid £65k + £65k expenses would you care? A resounding "No!" from all our politicians!! Roll on the day of reckoning!!!

///
11079 Chris

You asked if "big brother" was watching.
ITN news.
A controversial database containing the details of every child in England is set to be rolled out later.
ContactPoint, a £224 million project, was set up in response to a key recommendation of the Laming Inquiry into the tragic death of eight-year-old Victoria Climbie in 2000.
The directory will hold the name, address, date of birth, GP and school details of all under-18s, as well as the name and contact details of any professional working with that child.

Answer your question?

Information on the issue of peak oil production and the crisis facing the world including Hubbert Curve, Olduvai Theory, jargon, oil products, ...

google;

wolf at the door

already has 4 times in 2 weks its went up bloody ridculous 11098 dont have a big garden why t he fk should i have to sdo what they want the govement can get ther fkin fingers out thats what

The last two posts spell it out people, Cheap Oil is a thing of the past. It's going to start rising again.

Let's pray it doesn't reach $200 a barrel 'cos if it does we can kiss our current lifestyles goodbye ....... it'll be dog eat dog.

Alternative renewable energy needs to be found and found soon, fossil fuels are going the way of the dinosaurs.

The pound is falling even further against the dollar.
Be prepared for a price hike at the pumps.
It will NOT come down again this time.

The time of cheap oil has passed.

Forever.

On the subject of peak oil, has anyone noticed food prices creeping up at the supermarkets?
Pump prices are there for all to see, three feet high figures on a large board.
Dairy products seem to be rising the most. closely followed by vegetables. All food products will soon start to climb.
Whilst keeping yourself in employment will require more luck than experience.

A lot of emphasis is being placed on finding more oil to be extracted, when in fact we need to reduce our reliance and prepare for a different lifestyle.
If you are middle-aged you will still be around to see the full impact of no oil.

The richest countries buying as much oil as possible to keep a lifestyle that is really beyond any-one's means. Countries with oil refusing to sell because they need it for themselves. The richest countries will start attacking oil producing states. All out war for oil.
USA and the UK have already proved this with the 2003 attacks on Iraq to secure a future supply of Middle Eastern oil.

Try to imagine what it would be like, a vast reduction in readily available oil.
Far higher fuel costs for transport, farmers, deliveries, policing, the whole fabric of modern society.
As money becomes thinner for governments and the general public, unrest in populated areas will see a sharp increase. Panic will take hold. Food will start to become scarce. People will die. Either by local riots, starvation or through law and order breaking down. Without policing of cities personal attacks on thieves and robbers will increase. Shops will be raided by normally well behaved people as food shortages start to bite.
Anarchy. Murder. Local groups banding together to protect their own areas.

It really does not have to be like this. Before the industrial revolution, we survived for many centuries on sustainable, renewable energy.
We have between ten and forty years to develop sustainable energy. Whether this is powered by wind, sea, nuclear or a combination is for governments to decide. And decide they must, quickly.

You can help yourself by starting to become self sufficient, reduce your dependence on obvious uses of oil, the car, plastic, electricity, central heating. Try growing vegetables in your garden or allotment. You might even enjoy it!!

As a nation, we are starting to become aware of change. But too slowly.
People on this blog complain of higher unleaded or diesel prices. How we should not subsidise third world countries. In reality it will make little difference to how long oil can be produced and consumed at the present rate.
It will soon be priced out of most peoples pocket around the world anyway.
Then the real fun starts.