Clause 9 - Rates of duty for goods vehicles
Finance Bill
6:15 pm
Mr Harry Barnes (North East Derbyshire, Labour)
Will my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary respond specifically to the points raised about the situation in Northern Ireland? The United Kingdom has a land border with the Republic of Ireland, and the disparity between duty rates presents many serious problems. It is almost impossible for anyone to run a petrol station in a place such as Belfast without taking in illegal petrol to survive. Many people have turned to illegal forms of activity because of the arrangements there.
There is a loss to the Revenue, because if people are within 30 or 40 miles of the border, it is worth their while to fill up their vehicles at the stations that have grown up along it. A massive amount of diesel is purchased in the Republic of Ireland, where the duty is paid, and then smuggled into Northern Ireland. Doctored material is also brought in illegally. The Select Committee on Northern Ireland Affairs has produced a report on that. Although we are talking about only 3 per cent. of the population, it is a serious issue.