Stuart Anderson MP has declared a major victory for drivers after the Government scrapped plans to hike fuel duty in September. The Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced on Thursday, 21st May 2026, that the 5p per litre fuel duty cut introduced by the Conservative Government in March 2022 will be extended for the rest of the year. The rate will remain at nearly 53p per litre. The Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer confirmed the move at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, 20th May 2026. However, it is not clear whether the full 5p increase will go ahead in January, with timing to be set out at the Autumn Budget.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
“Residents across South Shropshire are facing the cost of Labour’s economic mistakes, which have led to higher inflation, energy costs, and unemployment. While I welcome the government’s climbdown on Fuel Duty, the hikes have only been delayed by four months whereas they should never have been announced at all. In government, the Conservatives consistently protected drivers with a decade-long freeze on fuel duty and a further 5p cut following Putin’s unjustified invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The conflict in Iran has shown why Labour was wrong to attack motorists with even more taxes. This is a victory for drivers, but the Treasury has not ruled out a 5p increase in January. So, I will keep pressing for Fuel Duty to stay frozen so Shropshire families and farmers are not penalised for living in rural areas where the car remains a necessity, not a luxury.”
The decision is a central pillar of the Conservatives Party’s Plan for Drivers. In government, the Conservative froze Fuel Duty for 14 years and cut it when prices spiked following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Stuart launched his campaign in August 2024, when he called on the new government to continue the freeze on Fuel Duty that has saved drivers more than £2,000 since 2011/12. Stuart secured an extension, which saved drivers £59 on average in 2025-26. However, the Autumn Budget in November 2025 revealed that the freeze would be axed from September 2026. This would have cost the average driver £78.10 per year and a two-car household – which represents more than a third of all households in Shropshire – £156 a year.
Rates were planned to increase by 1p per litre on 1st September, with a pair of 2p per litre rises on 1st December this year and 1st March next year. Stuart opposed the increases, pointing out that more than two-thirds of residents in South Shropshire travel to work by car or van. That represents more than 27,000 constituents. He warned that rural communities would be hit hardest by higher taxes at the pump. 60,000 people signed the Conservative Party's petition against the hikes.
Stuart was also concerned about the impact on farmers who faced a 10 per cent rise in the cost of red diesel by March 2027. Red diesel prices have already increased by more than 37% per litre since the outbreak of the conflict in Iran. Stuart said this was unfair on farmers, who are already facing rising fertiliser costs and the Family Farm Tax which took effect in April. As part of the announcement, the government confirmed Fuel Duty on red diesel will be cut by over a third until the end of the year. A 5p rise in Fuel Duty was estimated to increase household living costs by £1.9 billion per annum, pushing up the price of everyday essentials.
The climbdown comes as fuel prices have risen sharply following the conflict in Iran, which began on 28th February 2026. Iran’s restrictions on tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz have added 26p per litre to petrol and 44p per litre to diesel at UK forecourts. The RAC Foundation warned that drivers have paid a ‘war premium’ of a staggering £3 billion in inflated fuel prices, half-a-billion of which has gone to the Exchequer in VAT receipts. It added that the average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts was 158.5p, the most expensive level since December 2022.
