Overview
- Reform UK’s “national fuel tax protest,” which rolled into Whitehall on Monday, drew only a party-branded bus and a taxi before the planned march was canceled.
- Organisers had promoted the event with an AI-generated image showing tractors, lorries and vans outside Parliament, but reporters on the scene counted only a handful of supporters.
- Party figures including Robert Jenrick pressed the Chancellor to scrap the planned reversal of the 5p-per-litre duty cut from September and to halve VAT on petrol and diesel for three months, saying tax makes up about half of pump prices and raises roughly £35 billion a year.
- In the Commons on Tuesday, Treasury minister Gareth Thomas defended extending the 5p cut but did not rule out the September increase, as critics warned a rise could add about £150 a year for families and £2,000 for hauliers.
- Forecourt costs remain elevated after Iran-related disruption in the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil higher since late February, leaving petrol about 25p and diesel about 49p per litre above pre-conflict levels and straining household budgets.