British truckers protest at fuel price rises

Hundreds of British truck drivers caused road chaos across central London yesterday in a protest to demand government help over rising fuel prices.

Truckers from across Britain converged on the capital and parked on a major thoroughfare, causing traffic backlogs throughout the city. Similar protests took place in Wales.

They said fuel bills had risen by almost half in a year and demanded a rebate, arguing they were an essential link in keeping the country moving.

The drivers say the sharp rise in fuel costs has put many of their businesses at risk.

The protest came as members of Prime Minister Gordon Brown's ruling Labour Party, anxious after dismal electoral results, called for a rethink of plans for fuel and road tax increases.

Ministers said the government was listening to people's concerns but there was no immediate announcement on relief.

"If we don't work the country doesn't work. It is as simple as that," said Stephen Taylor, head of warehousing and distribution firm TM Logistics, who estimated that around 85 per cent of goods were carried by road around the country.

"It is only a matter of a few days before things grind to a halt."

"It is really bad, it is affecting all of us," Joe Cook, a truckers' spokesman, told Reuters.

Mr Cook said his weekly fuel costs had risen by more than £3,000 since January. "It is going up every day and we just can't cope with the higher prices," he said.

Police said more than 200 trucks were parked on a main artery leading into central London. Drivers later delivered a petition to Mr Brown's Downing Street office.

Diesel is about 130 pence a litre in Britain, more than double the price in the US. Hauliers want a cut in fuel duty of 20 to 25 pence a litre.

Britain levies the highest fuel duty in the EU with nearly 65 per cent of the pump price of petrol due to tax.

In France, where fishermen have blockaded ports to demand cheaper fuel, President Nicolas Sarkozy suggested using extra revenues from taxes on petrol to help sectors affected by high fuel costs.

"It is always the same old promises. We will judge the facts. We want concrete (action)," said Yannick Pourchaux, president of the fishing committee of Fecamp in northern France.

Adding to Mr Brown's troubles - his personal approval ratings are scraping rock bottom after 11 months in power - 42 lawmakers signed a petition calling for proposed increases in vehicle taxes to be abandoned.

Some 30 Labour parliamentarians also called for a proposed two pence per litre rise in fuel tax, already postponed by six months to October, to be shelved.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw said the government was listening but would resist a knee-jerk reaction.

"The chancellor and the Prime Minister say they are listening to public concerns and if there are going to be decisions, they could be made in the autumn," he told BBC Radio.

Mr Brown was recently forced into a climbdown on a change to income tax levels which would have hit the poorest. It increased speculation about his future as Prime Minister.

The haulage protests stirred memories of fuel demonstrations in 2000 when prices hit £1 a litre and protesters blockaded oil refineries. Then as now, the demonstrations started in France and spread to Britain.

"We urgently need to look afresh at this issue," the head of Britain's Road Haulage Association wrote in a letter to the Treasury. "Feelings are running high."