Vehicle Excise Duty
Oral Answers to Questions — Treasury
11:30 am
Tim Loughton (Shadow Minister, Children, Schools and Families; East Worthing and Shoreham, Conservative)
What plans he has to make an announcement on vehicle excise duty as part of the pre-Budget report.
Angela Eagle (Parliamentary Secretary, HM Treasury; Wallasey, Labour)
The changes to vehicle excise duty were set out in Budget 2008, and they are scheduled to be legislated on in the Finance Bill in 2009.
Tim Loughton (Shadow Minister, Children, Schools and Families; East Worthing and Shoreham, Conservative)
In West Sussex, during half-term week, the traffic levels on the A27 typically fall by about 20 per cent., due to the absence of the school run. This is related to the impracticalities of public transport, and is happening despite the fact that we are encouraging car sharing, which typically requires larger cars. Worthing also has a disproportionate number of elderly and disabled constituents who require larger cars for their mobility equipment. How does the Minister suggest that those constituents change their driving behaviour, given that they are to be faced with the treble whammy of swingeing increases in vehicle excise duty, plummeting second-hand car sale values, and no money being available to buy new, environmentally friendly cars?
Angela Eagle (Parliamentary Secretary, HM Treasury; Wallasey, Labour)
It is important to remember that 55 per cent. of motorists in graduated VED will be better off, or no worse off, under these proposals. There are family cars and larger cars at or under the 160 g/km emissions level, below which the motorist will be either better off or no worse off.
Stephen Hesford (PPS (Mr Michael Wills, Minister of State), Ministry of Justice; Wirral West, Labour)
On the cost of motoring, has my hon. Friend made an assessment of the policy of a fuel duty escalator? If so, does she agree that it would be a ridiculous misjudgment to implement such a policy?
Angela Eagle (Parliamentary Secretary, HM Treasury; Wallasey, Labour)
Under a policy of fuel duty stabilisers, we would now be putting an extra 5p a litre on fuel duty. That would directly affect prices at the pump, which would affect the cost of motoring far more than VED.
Justine Greening (Shadow Minister, Treasury; Putney, Conservative)
The Government's planned unfair road tax rises will bring in £1.8 billion over the next two years. That is money that families could have done with in their own pockets, rather than the Government's. Are the Government not making a difficult situation worse for those families? The reality is that Ministers should ditch this road tax rise. It does not support families; it does not support the economy; and it does not even support the environment.
Angela Eagle (Parliamentary Secretary, HM Treasury; Wallasey, Labour)
Why is the hon. Lady talking about that, when her policy would put 5p on fuel duty now, creating an increase that would feed right through to the pumps? That is bad judgment.