Also, if U.S. the dollar hadn't collapsed due to the financial markets, oil would cost about 1/2. The financial markets collapsed because democrats enacted laws and pushed for giving loans to the poor, so they could own real-estate in the early 1990s, This initiated the basis of the subprime debacle

Jeff, Yacolt, US

Im in the armed forces and these hikes are really hitting us guys hard. Most people commute home to visit their families and loved ones at weekends. We on average do a lot more mileage than the average man. If these hikes continue it may not be worth remaining in our military, think about that Mr B.

Paul Carroll, Liverpool, Merseyside

How much extra income has the chancellor received since the last budget as a result of the increase of fuel prices and his 60%(?) slice of that? I suppose he did have to pay the coppers 1.9% and another £2.7 billion a result of his 10% tax climb down.

Is he making stacks of cash at our expense?

michael, bolton,

The goverment need to reduce duty on fuel NOW. With the increase in fuel costs they can still retain the tax revenue of a year ago an make it more comfortable for the taxpayer.

ACT NOW GORDON!

Luke Faichney, Robin Hood's Bay, England

John Griffiths,

in answer to your question I believe it is due to a shortage of diesel production and it is set to get worse.

charles, Cirencester, Great Britain

Hi,
The relationship of the fall of the dollar and the price of petrol is confessing. If things continue as such I must go back to riding my bicycle.
Regards

Dr. Terence Hale, zandvoort, Holland

Forget about oil, get the many new nuclear power stations built and hydrogen manufacture under way. It will take about 10 - 15 years to full fruition but we will all be free of foreign costs and they can then pay us instead. Start working, stop talking!

B J Deller, Marbella, Spain

It is also our thirst for oil that is unquenchable, we can't conveniently shift the blame to developing countries. We need to cut down on oil consumption and no mistake.

So buy locally, leave the car at home, get the bike out of the shed and reduce the ammount we give to Shell and Exxon.

Sam, Carlisle,

Why is diesel now so much more expensive than petrol? Six months ago the difference was one or two pence but now it is usually more than ten pence a litre dearer. I believe the fuel duty is the same for petrol and diesel. Has there been a relative increase in demand for diesel?

John Griffiths, Manchester, UK

On petrol prices, my local garage at Freshwater is charging £1.30 per litre for diesel and £1.15 per litre for 95 octane petrol.

Dudley Bryant, Hulverstone, England

It's true that fuel is cheaper in the US then in Britain we shouldn't forget that we have a National Health Service, better education facilities, and a benefits system that puts the US in shame. The cost of providing these services increases with rising fuel costs and they do have to be paid for!

Richard Heade, Oxford, UK

At what point will the Inland Revenue increase the allowable car mileage from the now incredibly low 40p per mile? It's been at this level for years since petrol was less than 50p per litre. Someone please mount a campaign!!

Paul, Buxted,

Save your Transport Business
Truck, bus, boat owners must act now and start installing fuel cells . These can save up to £400. out of ever £1000. Visit www.Tfuelcell.co.uk

Jas, Alders, UK

Not only has petrol and diesel risen, but heating oil has doubled in the past year (from 31p a litre last year to 53p a litre this year). Certain rural areas who don't have gas are forced to use oil at any price the oil companies choose(apart from burning fossil fuels etc).
Reduce the tax now!

Simon Muggleton, Lewes, East Sussex

Keep the tax on fuel. I'd rather pay more for fuel than pay 50% income tax like the french do.

Sam, Carlisle,

Did I imagine it, or did I read a year or 2 ago that it is estimated that under the ocean, north of Siberia (an extension to Russia's continental shelf if they are to be believed), contains approx. 40% of this planet's remaining oil supplies! If true that's a lot of oil! Shame nation's can't agree!

Simon, Cambridge, UK

It's going up and up, no stopping it now! I wonder how long ti will be before industry is not allowed to "pre-buy" oil, after all why sell today at $130 when next year you can sell at $200 or more?

Graham , Littlehampton,

And yet and yet and yet....in the USA petrol is staggeringly cheap ....someone , somewhere has decided that the UK and Europe are the ones who have to pay more?

william grierson, Kimpton, uk

Why do the "pundits" in this column differ from the yesterday's edition that had an article saying that Gulf producers are hiring tankers to store oil as no one is buying it. The article also showed the drop in extra annual demand in China and the US. No oil???? Perhaps not.

jim d, Norwich, UK

You are failing to mention that Goldman Sachs, the investment bank has a super large quantity of money on oil going up.

They own the largest quanity of long oil future contracts in existance

Why do you continuosly give them free publicity

Nicholas Iles, Oswestry, Shropshire

I remember a few years ago when there were countrywide fuel protests because unleaded fuel topped 80p a litre! Can't we stand up for ourselves? Maybe if everyone agreed not to fill up on a certain day, the government/oil companies might take note?

Vicki, Bishops Stortford,

And where so you think the government will magic the extra money from for public spending if they reduce the tax on petrol? they will put it on other things such as alcohol and cigarettes more likely only to again be moaned at. Unless you want to reduce public spending, i can't see how they can.

becky, stoke, uk

Average price of unleaded stood at £1.13 a litre (£6 Gall). 50.35p was taken in tax duty while VAT (17.5%) was 16.93p.

We pay the highests tax duty in the whole of Europe. American's pay £2 ($4) a Gallon, 4 litre's per gallon, thats 50p per litre.

Greedy Goverment wanting lions share!

Andrew Towell, Hartlepool, England, UK,

If foreign demand is the cause of our high prices, why do they pay less for their fuel than us?
Magic mirrors and false thievery will not save this government.
If the tories can do no better, there may well be unrest. Is that the solution to overcrowding?

Neil Brown, Maidstone,

Scrapping the latest or any tax on fuel is diametrically the wrong move. Price reflects the balance of supply and demand; you can pay the producers or be taxed by the government but pay you will. The latter option - which I don't like either! - is the less bad, even for hard-pressed motorists.

Noel Falconer MEcon, Couiza, France

The average price of oil in 2000 was $30 a barrel, it is now $130. If that is not engineer'd, I dont know what is!!!

Iran and Russia recently ditched selling oil in Dollar's and went for euro, pound is also at an all time low against the euro.

Main reason for high price, GOVERMENT TAX!!!!!!!

Bobby D, Uk, North,

just to agree with many other people its good old rip off britain again not just fuel but every thing to with day to day living the poor are getting poorer as usual wont be long before all we can do is afford to go just to work to earn enough to pay bills nothing else by the way are you ok mr brown

paul edwards, watford, england

I don't mind, I do drive, but have tailored my job to a short commute, which I can do on a bike. Not ideal, but we cannot have everything we want. Live with the price hike, drive less. How about that? My only essential drive is to the supermarket.

Mr Board, eastbourne, UK

If high tax reduces demand, our ability to import supplies will be reduced and prices will become prohibitive. We shall become an excluded nation. The PM needs to act NOW to reduce the tax burden. If demand falls, the chinese will have it all. Tax take has grown too much for transport to bear.

Neil Brown, Maidstone,

Owen, London
how about they improve public transport before you encourage more people to sue it.
I drive becasue it is much quicker and only marginally more expensive to drive than tak(l)e the train.
when we get a cheap, relaible train servie, more people may consider using it

mike, nottingham,

If we were true Europeans, we would only pay what Europeans pay for fuel, instead we are governed by Rip-off Labour in Rip-off Britain.
France: euro 1.18 diesel
Spain: euro 1.10 diesel
That is about 80-90pence.....

Neil Brown, Maidstone,

Please remember that this is the ONLYcountry in Europe that considers Diesel should cost more than other fuels.

Why is that Gordon Brown?

It defeats your inflation target....

Neil Brown, Maidstone,

Here we go the non road tax paying cyclists and train spotters are in their element. Get with the program you luddites the real reason for high fuel prices is this government’s obsession with tax. In the Navy if it doesn’t move paint it. Under Nu Labour if it moves tax it.

Cromwell, Leeds, England

'Get on public transport' might be an easy concept for someone who lives in London, but unforunately those of us who dont live in the capital find that our public transport networks are rarely sufficient to allow us to switch from our cars.

Chris, Southampton,

Too many motor vehicles on the road, too many unnecessary car journeys like the school runs persist. The $200.00 predicted price of oil per barrel cannot come quickly enough as far as I am concerned. There is something that can be done about high oil prices. Limit the usage of the car.

Frank Williams, Derby, Derbyshire

The answer to the fuel inflaction is to drive less. Helps your pocket, helps the planet and punishes the government. Calls for a drop in fuel taxation ought to be connected to an alternative model to finance road construction and cover for substantial environmental costs.

Fred Caprivi, Manchester,

We are heading into a major recession and nothing is going to stop that happening. Life, as we have known it, is about to change dramatically.

Nigel, Lincoln,

We are part of Europe but we pay the highest tax on a litre of petrol after paying an extra 2% more in interest rates. Rip off Britain.

Will, Lincoln, UK

We're all going through tighter times with less spending power. This should not only be for the public domain, this less spending power should effect the government too. They need to do something about the tax they impose on fuel even if it does mean less revenue for them.

Steve, Wolverhampton,

Oil is only going to get more expensive, India and China are buying up more and more.. Time to stop moaning and get on public transport people!

Owen, London, UK

Fuel prices are high due to unregulated trading and globalisation. The effect of this on our economy is bad. It would seem that big cuts in taxation are the solution. The government has to react more quickly to this crisis, and it is a very dangerous crisis indeed !.

iain, elgin, Scotland

The current price of petrol in France proves that the main headache for UK drivers is tax rather than the cost of crude. It has only risen 3-5 cents over the last year there. Now some of that must be due to the strong euro but the French must have cut the tax as well to keep it that low.

Paul, London,

Motorists - I'll be thinking of you as I cycle to work. My bike runs for thousands of miles on 100ml of chain oil and a little bearing grease. it also keeps me fit, slim and healthy, I enjoy it and I eat what I like. You don't need to use a car for short journeys!

Ben Garside, Loughborough, Leics

I have noticed an eerie silence for the government. What about the additional 5-6p per litre VAT the treasury is making on these rises.

Time for serious protests.....I can't believe in the 18 months I've owned my car the price of a tank has gone from £50 to £80.

I've had enough!!!!

Phil, Rugby, England

What was that film about peanut oil replacing crude, and the peanut oil man ruled the world? Remind me, please, someone

Drusilla Attwood, Leatherhead,

As Liz from Ely says, the largest portion of the price of UK fuel is the double tax whammy - both fuel duty and VAT.

This government MUST tax fuel less - or suffer the consequences. They thought the backlash was bad over the 10 p debacle, just wait for the motorists to start complaining.

Tom, Isle of Skye,

I've ditched the car already. On my 12 mile a day commute I save £15 a week on fuel. Thats £10.50 a week less for the government to waste and £4.50 less to oil companies and dodgy regimes. If it's possible for you to use the bike don't think about it... Do It

Charles , Epsom, Surrey

Oil shale is abundant, but extracting useful fuel from it consumes huge amounts of energy because it has to be heated up to something like 450degrees celcius to get the useful vapours.

S.Bloyce, UK,

There's plenty of people in the developed world who are addicted to cheap fuel. It's not just demand from China and India. Think about the millions of 4x4s - each fueling up on 20+ gallons - and often to move around a small 100lb person. Talk about inefficient and wasteful!

tony smith, reading,

Peak Oil is on the way if it hasn't been reached already. People wil now be FORCED to switch to public transport and to reduce energy use... about time too!

It's not as if we haven't been warned about this for the last 30 years!

Alex McGregor, Plymouth, UK

Oil is not getting more expensive. The dollar is getting less valuable every day. It effects everyone because oil is traded in dollars. Peak oil is a smoke screen for the falling dollar.

John, London, UK

Over 15 years ago it was stated in many articles in the media that there were unlimited supplies of oil in America and Canada but because it was held in a oil shale it would not be viable to convert it until the price of oil reached 80 dollars per barrel?why are we not hearing about these deposit

mick, preston, england

Looks like pretty soon i'll be dusting the mountain bike off

Tom Barnett, Birmingham, UK

Don't forget though ... inflation is only 2.5%! ;-)

Andy, Bath,

Time for the government to cut the tax on petrol remember 70- 80% of the price of petrol is the tax!

Liz, Ely, Cambs

Time to brush the dust off the bicycle!

Andrew, Bristol,

Good, we have put off for far too long the reality that oil is running out, crunch time is here and we must now invest in alternative sources of energy.

adrian, aldershot, England

Surely it is the thirst in developed counties that is unquenchable while the developing world is only just starting to become addicted too.Time for governments to accept that oil is a finite and cheap source of energy and will run out. We will have to adjust to more expensive energy.

Clive Stringer, Eggesford, Devon