Fuel Protests set to happen this week

After reading about a planned fuel protest on PetrolPrices.com we figured our readers might like to know about what is going on. You are, after all, all users of fuel! Here are the details from their site: "You might remember the fuel protest of 2000 which initially gathered strong support from motorists. However, that support quickly turned when many motorists were prevented from filling up because of lorry blockades. PetrolPrices.com expressed to the organisers that they may find public support for another fuel protest providing it was properly planned to be legal and orderly. So far, the Transaction 2007 organisers have been unwilling to confirm to us specifically what action they have planned for this week. When we pressed the group's spokesman, Chris Hunter, he said "This will be a numbers game levied against legislation. I can comment no further." With fuel breaking well beyond the £1 barrier, PetrolPrices.com has had a huge rise in the number of emails from concerned motorists. People were especially angry following the last fuel duty hike imposed by the Government in October. Despite being made aware of the huge resistance from motorists, the Government pushed ahead with the 2p duty increase, leaving the public frustrated and angry. Over 80,000 people had voted against the tax hike on our blog post. The protests of 2000 achieved some success in that the fuel duty escalator was frozen. However, it has now resumed and with the rising price of oil motorists are paying ever increasing taxation due to VAT on fuel. Unlike fuel duty which is fixed, VAT is charged at 17.5%, so for every 1p increase in the price of fuel, we are actually paying an extra 1.175p." Transaction 2007 announced a firm date for the protest. Protests will start Saturday 15th December 2007 at 10:00am. They say the date was decided by members as "the best possible to enable those who would normally be working during the week to attend." According to a press release on the site, they plan to protest outside refineries or storage depots across the country. We've already had our say on the PetrolPrices.com blog, where more information can be found on the protest, and voted on both polls. Why not have your say and let people know what you think about the rise in fuel costs? Even if you don't want to get involved with the fuel debate, you might want to check out the PetrolPrices.com site as it has a very useful mail service that alerts you to the top 5 petrol stations in your area selling the cheapest fuel of your choice. Over the last six months, it has saved me a lot of miles finding the cheapest station and saved me over £50.