NEWS RELEASE - November 9th 1999

 

Gordon Brown's capitulation on Fuel Duty Escalator

TRANSform Scotland, Scotland's national sustainable transport alliance (1), today criticised Gordon Brown's announcement in today's Pre-Budget Statement to effectively scale back the Fuel Duty Escalator policy (2). This means that the Government have gone against their previous commitment to continue the policy in place until 2002.

Colin Howden, Campaign Manager of TRANSform Scotland, said:
"The UK Government has binding commitments to tackle climate change and transport is the principal cause of climate change in Scotland (32%). The UK Government's decision to scale back the Fuel Duty Escalator suggests it prefers pleasing business interests to protecting the environment."

Colin Howden continued:
"Gordon Brown's attempts to present the Escalator as the previous government's policy strikes us as disingenuous - especially when he has previously raised the level of the Escalator. The policy was in fact a recommendation of the UK's leading expert group on environmental issues, the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution [in 1994]."

"While the announcement on the Climate Change Levy on industrial energy users is good news, it remains to be seen whether this policy can achieve the same level of reduction in climate change emissions that the Fuel Duty Escalator can. If Gordon Brown decides to cut the Escalator in the next Budget he will have to present an equivalent policy to reduce pollution from cars and lorries."

On the topic of possible ringfencing of funds for transport, Colin Howden concluded:
"The suggestion that any future funds from the Fuel Duty Escalator would be ringfenced for transport is better news - but only if these funds are spent on getting people out of cars and on to public transport."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:
(1) TRANSform Scotland is the national sustainable transport campaign, bringing together 58 organisations - including transport operators, local authorities, environment and conservation groups, chambers of commerce and local transport groups - interested in transport, the environment and a sustainable Scotland. We can be contacted at 72 Newhaven Road, Edinburgh, EH6 5QG. Tel.: 0131-467-7714; Fax: 0131-554-8656; E-mail: campaigns@transformscotland.org.uk; web: http://www.transformscotland.org.uk

(2) The application of the Fuel Duty Escalator between 1996 and 2002 has previously been estimated to reduce climate change emissions by between 2 and 5 million tonnes. It was announced that the Escalator would be reviewed on a Budget-by-Budget basis, with any future above-inflation increases in the duty level ringfenced for a transport funds to "modernise" transport.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

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