BUDGET 2011: motoring expert from Parkers available to comment – strong opinions and snappy sound bites

With concessions in fuel duty expected, what else does Parkers Editor, Kieren Puffett want out of tomorrow’s budget? “Car users are being hit with an ever increasing bill. Fuel duty, VAT, road tax and company car tax cost motorists dearly, but in return they get poorly surfaced roads, traffic jams and a huge cost every time they fill up at the pumps. At a time when people’s budgets are being squeezed hard, providing options that not only help them save money but also contribute to a greener Britain and deliver growth should be backed in the Budget.”

Parkers has four key areas for comment on budget day, focusing on reducing emissions and keeping costs down for motorists:-

1.     Fuel duty – UK motorists pay around £87 for a 60-litre tank of petrol compared to £70 this time last year. If the fuel duty rise isn’t scrapped, motorists could pay as much as 5p per litre more because the fuel duty escalator also takes inflation – currently at 4.4% - into account. In some UK forecourts petrol is already at £1.46 per litre and this could rise to a staggering £1.51, while diesel could hit a new high of £1.56 per litre if the Government doesn’t deliver on this concession.

2.     Give greater incentives to encourage people to switch to low-emissions cars. The £5,000 grant on electric cars runs until March 2012, but this isn’t long enough to get the electrical charging infrastructure in place, or for manufacturers to develop the technology further. The grant should be extended until the end of this parliamentary term.

3.    Ditch VAT on cars emitting less than 100g/km of CO2.  Currently a car with emissions less than 100g/km is not subject to road tax, but this minor tax break doesn’t go far enough. A VAT cut will encourage buyers to opt for low-emitting cars. It will stimulate new car sales and boost our economy: sub100g/km cars such as the Mini One D and the Toyota Auris HSD are both built in the UK.

Below is a table of the five sub-100g/km models that should be VAT-free:

Model                                                                                Original price                             VAT cut price

Volvo V50 D2 DRIVe ES (115ps) stop/start                   £21,915                                      £18,262

Fiat 500 TwinAir Lounge                                                    £12,530                                      £10,442

Audi A3 1.6 TDI 3-dr                                                            £18,245                                      £15,204

VW Polo BlueMotion 1.2 TDI 75ps 3dr man                   £14,860                                      £12,383

Toyota Auris HSD                                                                 £20,167                                      £16,805

4.     Remove the outdated 3% diesel premium on “Benefit-in-Kind” for company car drivers. Emissions for diesel cars have dropped rapidly and are now much lower than equivalent petrol models. Company car drivers should not be financially penalised for choosing diesels.

Kieren Puffett, Editor of Parkers is available for comment today and tomorrow on anything motoring related surrounding the Budget. Kieren has extensive broadcast media experience and is able to relate what the new budget means for ‘the man on the street’ when in comes to motoring and to also talk about the positives and negatives of each point.