CIDER TAX DUMPED BUT FUEL TAX RETAINED - says Mather

Argyll & Bute MSP Jim Mather, has commented on the fact that as the Labour Government shed budget proposals in preparation for the general Election that they have determined to retain the increases in fuel tax that have such a devastating effect on rural and island living costs.

Jim Mather said:

"In their scramble to clear the decks for the general Election the government has dropped several of their budget proposals. It was good to see the abandonment of the proposals to penalise holiday lettings and puzzling to see the Chancellor drop the proposed increased duty on cider that would have brought it into line with other similar lines. When he was proposing this it was justified on health grounds and it is difficult to believe that these have changed in the space of a fortnight.

More worrying is the decision to cling to the increased levels of fuel tax. Only today the Automobile Association has announced that petrol prices in the UK are approaching an all time high. Chief culprit in this is the government with their ever increasing tax take.

The irony of the fact that an oil rich country like Scotland is paying the highest fuel prices in Europe and those who live in rural areas and on islands face additional surcharges on supplies and services as a result is shameful.

We welcome the opportunity of an election to express our concerns."