Keir Starmer postpones fuel duty increase

{"text":[[{"start":6.6,"text":"Sir Keir Starmer has postponed a planned 5p increase in fuel duty until the end of the year as part of a package of measures intended to cushion households from the fallout of the Iran war."}],[{"start":19.85,"text":"Starmer also announced a 12-month road tax holiday for hauliers which government officials said would save up to £912 a vehicle, while farmers and other “red diesel” users would see their fuel duty cut by more than a third."}],[{"start":33.7,"text":"Fuel duty was due to start rising in September, with the increase phased in over a number of months until March 2027, but Starmer said he wanted to shelter motorists from rising living costs."}],[{"start":46.650000000000006,"text":"“When global events drive up prices, it’s working people who feel it first,” he said, confirming the continuation of a “temporary” 5p cut in fuel duty until the end of the year."}],[{"start":58.050000000000004,"text":"Hauliers will see their vehicle excise duty cut to a token £1 when they renew, saving £600 for a typical heavy lorry and £912 for those with the highest liability."}],[{"start":70.60000000000001,"text":"The Treasury said that farmers, rail freight and other users would see fuel duty on “red diesel” cut to its lowest level for more than 20 years, at a time when prices for the fuel were 50 per cent higher than their pre-crisis levels."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":84.00000000000001,"text":"The package of measures is at odds with advice published on Wednesday by the IMF, which urged governments to avoid energy tax cuts that were expensive, hard to phase out, and chiefly benefited richer households."}],[{"start":96.55000000000001,"text":"Governments should instead let energy prices reflect international costs, giving cash transfers to protect the poorest, the Fund said. "}],[{"start":104.9,"text":"“That money could be better spent elsewhere, not least as the real cost of petrol is still lower today than it was pre-Covid,” said Jonny Marshall, principal economist at the Resolution Foundation think-tank, noting that the fuel duty cut would cost £210mn this year. "}],[{"start":120.9,"text":"Starmer’s announcement heralds a wider package of measures to improve energy security and tackle the cost of living to be announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in a speech on Thursday."}],[{"start":131,"text":"Reeves will set out new reforms to limit judicial reviews on “critical” green energy projects, including wind farms and nuclear power stations. She will argue that the reforms accelerate moves towards British energy independence, giving parliament direct powers to speed up the sluggish planning process."}],[{"start":149.35,"text":"Reeves wants to show that the government still retains control amid the chaos of recent speculation over the future of Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership. "}],[{"start":159.04999999999998,"text":"Some of Reeves’ allies are pushing for her to survive as chancellor if Starmer were replaced, as she is seen in the City of London as committed to economic stability. But many Labour MPs say this is highly unlikely."}],[{"start":173.45,"text":"One headline-grabbing move by Reeves will see the Treasury pushing large supermarkets to introduce voluntary price caps on key groceries in return for lifting some regulations, a plan first revealed by the FT."}],[{"start":186.89999999999998,"text":"The planning reforms would allow parliament to designate the most important clean energy projects as being of “critical national importance”."}],[{"start":194.2,"text":"“That would reduce the exposure from judicial review on all but human rights grounds,” the Treasury said. "}],[{"start":200.2,"text":"The Treasury said on Wednesday that the move would “help deliver the government’s commitment to accelerate new infrastructure development and drive growth, including much-needed projects like new power stations and offshore wind farms”."}],[{"start":211.95,"text":"It said that for all other nationally significant infrastructure — including transport and water projects — the government would introduce a fixed window for legal challenges, at the end of which the planning consent could be updated to address any legitimate issues."}],[{"start":226.04999999999998,"text":"The announcement confirms that Reeves believes the government’s initial planning reforms, introduced in the first session of parliament, did not go far enough. Some proposals were watered down because of parliamentary opposition."}],[{"start":238.2,"text":"However, Alexa Culver, a lawyer at RSK Wilding, said the move risked slowing development."}],[{"start":245,"text":"“Parliament can already approve infrastructure and override planning laws as they did for HS2. There are good reasons why they haven’t bothered since then — because the MPs become embroiled in the politics of it, and become the de facto planning authority, which they don’t want to be.”"}],[{"start":262.45,"text":"The government wants to decarbonise Britain’s electricity supplies by 2030, an ambitious goal that many experts believe is unrealistic as it will require vast new solar and wind farms, pylons and electricity cables."}],[{"start":276.75,"text":"Several proposed projects have been opposed by communities because of concerns about their impact on the local landscape and environment. "}],[{"start":284.8,"text":"The government has taken other steps to make it easier for developers to launch projects, including reducing the number of times opponents can bring a claim for judicial review. "}],[{"start":294.35,"text":"Since taking office, energy secretary Ed Miliband has approved several large solar farms, including the Springwell solar farm being developed by EDF in Lincolnshire. "}],[{"start":305.70000000000005,"text":"Additional reporting by Gill Plimmer and Delphine Strauss"}],[{"start":316.8,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1779327981_8399.mp3"}