Peter Vosper: The government pledges more help for motorists

In her budget, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, recognised the importance of the car to working people by confirming fuel duty will not increase for at least another year and confirmed that the existing 5p cut in duty, brought in by the previous government, will remain in place.

Reeves said, “I have concluded in these difficult circumstances, while the cost of living remains high and a backdrop of global uncertainty, increasing fuel duty next year would be the wrong choice for working people.”

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said drivers will “breathe an enormous sigh of relief." He also said, “Eight in ten drivers tell us they are dependent on their vehicles for the journeys they need to make, while 70% of commuters who live in rural areas have no other feasible alternatives to get to work beyond taking the car. It’s also worth remembering even as of today, 56 per cent of the total price of a litre of petrol is already tax and the VAT that is charged on top.”

The Chancellor also announced a £500 million increase in road maintenance funding from April 2025, said to culminate in an extra million potholes being fixed annually. £200 million will also be set aside to invest in the rollout of further EV chargers across England. A further £2 billion has been confirmed to support the automotive sector to “support our electric vehicle industry and develop our manufacturing base,” but the specifics are unclear.

The government will also introduce a ‘Pump Watch’ mandatory fuel price publication and monitoring scheme from the end of 2025. While this has been raised before, this is the first time a date has been set. Simon Williams said, “It’s fantastic to see the government will now introduce the Pumpwatch scheme and fuel prices monitoring scheme by the end of next year, as this is something we’ve long been calling for. This will help give drivers a fairer deal every time they fill up by enabling them to find the cheapest fuel near them and ensuring considerable reductions in wholesale fuel prices are passed on to the customer at the pumps.”

At Cop29, as European leaders seek to agree on new targets to limit long-term temperature rises to 1.5C, the prime minister is set to announce new ambitious emissions targets, which he describes as ‘achievable’. Manufacturers are now offering more attractive offers on electric vehicles as they attempt to reach their 22% target and prevent penalties. There are also more used electric vehicles on sale with prices very similar to their petrol equivalents and as range and charging facilities grow.

There are concerns the election of Donald Trump will cause more tariffs and restrictions on Chinese cars entering the USA, but this could be good news for Britain as the Chinese concentrate on Europe as their major opportunity. The arrival of more brands, more models, and lower prices will see pressure on European manufacturers to make electric vehicles a better proposition for private buyers in 2025.