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PETROL prices are at their lowest in six months — but could rise again if the 5p fuel duty cut is axed, the AA warns.
Fuel is now averaging 143p per litre, with diesel at 147.9p — levels not seen since earlier this year.
But the motoring association warns prices could quickly rise above 150p again if the fuel duty cut is scrapped in the Budget.
They say for low-paid workers, losing this tax relief could result in an additional £171.60 in annual fuel costs.
AA spokesman Luke Bosdet said: “Pump prices this summer have given UK drivers little cause for celebration.
“They may be way below the 191.53p record for petrol in July 2022 but they are currently locked at a permanently and historically high level that drains consumers’ finances.
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“For low-paid workers who welcomed a Living Wage increase of nearly £2 an hour during the cost-of-living crisis, having to pay an extra 6p a litre for road fuel is going to feel like a substantial pay cut.”
It was The Sun’s Keep It Down campaign that secured a 12-month extension to the temporary 5p fuel duty cut in March.
But there are fears Chancellor Rachel Reeves could increase fuel duty in the autumn Budget as she works out how to fill a multibillion-pound black hole in the public finances.
The Treasury said: “The Chancellor has been clear that difficult decisions lie ahead on spending, welfare and tax to fix the foundations of our economy and address the £22billion hole in the public finances left by the last government.”