Sparky Mark
Registered User
BBC News site's article
Don't know if anyone's caught this in the news last night or this morning, but the long & short of it is basically that a govt spokesperson has finally been forced to come clean with their estimates of how the new road tax proposals will effect drivers.
Why haven't they given a commitment to plough any extra revenue raised from this change back into public transport, or other green causes?
Hell, why don't they use the extra revenue raised to give motorists a bit of a break on fuel duty? Sure the UK govt can't effect global oil prices, as they're fond of pointing out, but given just how much of UK petrol prices are down to tax, they could give motorists a break if they wanted to.
Don't know if anyone's caught this in the news last night or this morning, but the long & short of it is basically that a govt spokesperson has finally been forced to come clean with their estimates of how the new road tax proposals will effect drivers.
Official estimates say vehicle excise duty will rise for 44% of vehicles made since 2001 - by up to £245 for the most polluting ones - but will fall for 33%.
Yeah sure! and I suppose it's just a coincidence that it happens to raise revenue as well. Don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with green taxes in principal, but it annoys the hell out of me when the govt jump on the green bandwagon as an excuse to raise extra revenue.But ministers insisted the aim was to cut pollution, not to raise revenue.
Why haven't they given a commitment to plough any extra revenue raised from this change back into public transport, or other green causes?
Hell, why don't they use the extra revenue raised to give motorists a bit of a break on fuel duty? Sure the UK govt can't effect global oil prices, as they're fond of pointing out, but given just how much of UK petrol prices are down to tax, they could give motorists a break if they wanted to.