A motoring campaigner has criticised Chancellor Rachel Reeves, warning that petrol and diesel costs could surge by up to 20p per litre in the coming weeks following her spring statement. Recent developments in the Middle East have caused oil and gas prices to soar, meaning motorists and households who had become accustomed to falling prices in recent months now face renewed increases.

FairFuelUK has been urging the Chancellor to intervene, but its founder Howard Cox was left disappointed following her lunchtime address in the Commons.

Mr Cox said: “This was a missed economic growth opportunity for the Chancellor amid a new damaging oil crisis. With refineries, oil tankers and the Straits of Hormuz being targeted, oil prices will continue to climb relentlessly. A barrel of crude is, at the time of writing, already over $84 (1pm March 3). This will add 5p to 10p per litre in the next week or so.

“A sustained rise in Brent to $100 could add 10p to 20p per litre to petrol and diesel within weeks, based on historical patterns – similar to the surges seen in 2022 when oil hit $120 amid the Ukraine invasion. For over two decades, our clueless politicians have not planned to be self-sufficient in oil and gas production.

“They should be held to account for making the UK reliant on imports. FairFuelUK continues to call on Rachel Reeves to cut Fuel Duty, but at the very least keep it frozen for the lifetime of this parliament.

“Independent retailers are held to ransom by ruthless cash-grabbing wholesalers and the big brands. So, I call for FairFuelUK’s PumpWatch to be rigorously and legally implemented to prevent the inevitable opportunistic profiteering. We will see punitive hikes, as the secret pump pricing algorithm that makes no logical sense to anyone will be ruthlessly exploited yet again by the fuel supply chain.”

RAC head of policy Simon Williams adopted a more cautious stance regarding recent global developments: “We really shouldn’t see a shock jump in prices at the pumps as wholesale fuel costs had only been rising gradually in recent weeks. Even though the price of dated Brent crude rose by $5 a barrel yesterday to $78, the impact of this shouldn’t be felt for over a week. But knowing the tendency for price increases to be passed on far more quickly than cuts, on behalf of drivers we urge retailers not to put up the price of fuel they’ve already got in forecourt tanks and reflect any increases in wholesale fuel fairly on the forecourt.”

Addressing the Commons following her statement, Ms Reeves claimed her strategy positioned the Treasury in a “better place” to handle gas and oil price shocks compared to 18 months previously. Labour MP Yuan Yang argued that enhanced collaboration with European governments “is crucial for bringing down the cost of food and for healing the economic self-harm done by the party opposite”.

The MP for Earley and Woodley added: “The Bank of England has said that her cuts to energy bills will help bring inflation down to around its target from next month. Will she commit to going further and continue to shield our constituents from global price shocks?”.

Responding, Ms Reeves told the Commons: “The Bank of England forecasts that the actions that I took in the budget last year would reduce inflation by around 0.4 percentage points and that inflation would be back close to target from April. That reflects not just taking £150 of energy bills, but also freezing prescription charges and freezing rail fares as well.

“Of course, the events unfolding in Iran and the Middle East have resulted over the last couple of days in gas prices going up by more than 60% and oil prices going up by more than 10%, which shows why the plan that we’ve had to take money off energy bills but also ensure our public finances are in a stronger place mean that we’re in a better place than we would have been 18 months ago after the mess left by the party opposite (the Conservatives).”

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