There’s some good news today for UK drivers located in certain rural areas. The European Union has confirmed a fuel duty relief scheme that could bring the price of petrol and diesel in these areas down by as much as five pence per litre.
The scheme had already been approved by the European Commission, but this EU “rubber stamping” means that it can now begin from 31st May this year. This was confirmed today by a BBC report.
The idea behind the initiative is to offer relief to fuel retailers in outlying areas to help cover the transportation costs to forecourts. In turn, this should mean that there are fewer disparities between rural and urban petrol prices. The scheme is, in fact, already in place for certain locations, such as the Isles of Scilly and the Hebrides, but will be extended to cover a number of new areas.
These include a range of regions in the Scottish Highlands, and some select areas in Cumbria, Devon and Yorkshire.
Rural petrol stations wishing to benefit from the scheme will be able to apply for registration from the beginning of next month. Hopefully this move will go some way to readdressing the sense of unfairness felt by drivers in these areas.