Harlow MP's fair fuel petition attracts 100,000 signatures

A PETITION launched by Harlow MP Rob Halfon demanding urgent action on spiraling fuel costs has received the 100,000 signatures needed to trigger a full Parliamentary debate on the issue.

The ‘Cheaper Petrol and Diesel’ e-petition was set up by the Tory backbencher in conjunction with pressure group FairFuelUK in July as part of a high-profile campaign urging the Government to cut fuel duty and introduce measures to drive down pump prices on UK forecourts.

Harlow MP Rob Halfon (centre) with former Top Gear presenter Quentin Wilson (third from right) and FairFuelUK campaigners

It quickly became one of the most popular causes on the Government’s e-petitions website, becoming only the third to have attracted 100,000 signatures on Friday evening.

"It has only taken since the end of July to reach 100,000 signatures - this shows the strength of feeling there is for this issue," Mr Halfon told the Star this week.

"Cutting fuel duty now must be a priority for the Chancellor, over and above the clamour to cut taxes for millionaires. "Rip-off petrol and diesel prices are now so high they are a poverty trap, keeping people on benefits as job-seekers can’t afford to travel, while many businesses are struggling to stay afloat."

He said that he would use the forthcoming Commons debate – a date for which has yet to be set – to argue for an immediate cut in fuel duty and call on the Government to pressurize oil firms into lowering pump prices.

He added: "I will also be urging the Government to set up a Royal Commission to look at long-term prices of petrol and questioning how oil stocks are released from the strategic reserves, as there is evidence that banks brought up supplies and then stored them at sea in order to keep oil prices high."

Fair FuelUK campaign manager Peter Carroll said the petition’s popularity sent a clear message to the Government.

"The public have spoken loud and clear," he said.

"People are looking to the politicians to understand that a cut in fuel duty would stimulate growth and have the added benefit of reducing inflation."