Low-key fuel protests begin
Fuel protests are underway across the UK, but are more low-key than expected and petrol bosses insist there is enough fuel for everyone.
With petrol prices hitting a pound a litre, protestors are angry by the level of tax on fuel.
The chancellor Gordon Brown said yesterday that he had no plans to reduce fuel duties and instead intended to promote co-ordinated global action to stabilise world oil prices.
The protests started at 06:00 BST this morning, but only a handful of demonstrators turned up at refineries across the country to demonstrate against soaring fuel prices.
Despite being due to last for three days, many are predicting the protests will be over sooner, unless further support materialises. The biggest demonstration at a Shell refinery in Jarrow, Tyneside, stretched to about a dozen protestors.
Activists have stressed that refineries will not be blockaded and drivers have been urged not to panic-buy petrol. Many stations have reportedly run out of fuel after motorists bought up to a week’s supply in a single day at the start of the week.
Many drivers feared a repeat of the chaos on Britain’s roads caused by fuel price protests in 2000 and garages are still reporting soaring sales as people continue to stock up.
But petrol bosses have insisted that there will be no disruption in supply as a result of the protests and there is plenty of fuel in the country.
“We are confident that fuels will be leaving our refineries and our terminals on schedule, that our service stations will be re-equipped with fuel,” Chris Hunt from the UK Petroleum Industry Association told the BBC.
“Our message to the general public is: don’t panic, just go about your business as normal and fill your vehicles as you normally would.”
But the RAC foundation has called upon the public not to support the protests, blaming the recent price rises at forecourts on the disruption caused to the oil industry by Hurricane Katrina in southern US states.
“The fuel protestors are doing much harm as talk of blockades has led to panic-buying in some parts of the country,” Edmund King, executive director of the RAC Foundation said.
“Their tactics are backfiring and could lead to higher prices. There is very little public support for these self-appointed protestors but they could be doing a great disservice to the public.
“Motorists understand that the recent increases in the pump price have been instigated by world events such as Hurricane Katrina. It does little good protesting against a hurricane.”
