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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Neil Lancefield and Daniel Keane

New record petrol prices hike pressure on Government to cut duty again

Pressure on the Government to take action on fuel prices intensified after the average cost of petrol reached a new high (Joe Giddens/PA) (Picture: PA)

Pressure on the Government to take action on fuel prices intensified after the average cost of petrol reached a new high.

The RAC said a further cut in duty this week would be “very welcome, albeit overdue”.

Figures from data firm Experian show the average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts reached a new high of 185.0p on Sunday - an increase of 7.1p in just a week.

Meanwhile, the average price of diesel was 190.9p per litre on Sunday.

The figures came as it was announced that the UK economy had shrunk again in April as businesses struggled with the impact of price rises and inflation.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said gross domestic product, a measure of the size of the economy, fell by 0.3 per cent in April, with all three main sectors suffering a fall in output for the first time since January last year.

April’s month-on-month drop in GDP was also the biggest contraction since January 2021 and follows a fall of 0.1 per cent in March.

Boris Johnson on Monday said the negative economic data was down to an "inflationary price bump" that the country will "get through very strongly indeed".

"It's true that other countries are now catching up and we're seeing the effects of inflation around the world hitting this country as well as everywhere else,” he told reporters.

“But if you look for instance at the the IMF data, the UK comes back at or near the top of the of the G7 league very quickly.”

Last week, the price of filling a typical family car with petrol surpassed £100 for the first time as a Cabinet minister warned fuel retailers against ignoring the Treasury’s 5p fuel duty cut.

Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove said the Chancellor is keeping “under review all the measures” to ensure retailers complied with the Treasury’s fuel duty cut.

He said: “One of the things we do need to do is to make sure that every forecourt, every outlet, is making sure that it doesn’t take advantage of this situation to build up excess profits.”

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