Middle England protests over petrol rip-off

Everyone in the UK knew the government made a load of money from tax on petrol, but thanks to a well-run Boycott the Pumps (soon tabloidised into "Dump the Pump") campaign there are now few motorists that aren't aware Britain's petrol is the most expensive in Europe and that Gordon Brown's Treasury takes a whopping 75p for every £1 you spend.

For our US cousins, we also pay something like three times more for a gallon of the old engine juice.

Needless to say, this being the new millennium, there is a corresponding website, boycott-the-pumps.com. The campaign has picked up momentum since it was championed by the press and yesterday had to pull email addresses off the site as the campaigners tried to cope with existing emails. It clocked up over 90,000 hits within a few days from people wanting more information on the planned boycott on 1 August.

It's a well put together site, spelling out the arguments, offering downloadable posters and banners and linking to other sites of a similar mind.

In an interesting comparison, the site lists what the price of common goods would be if they were taxed at the same 340 per cent rate as petrol. A loaf of bread would be £1.58, a first class stamp £1.13 and a pack of batteries £21.89. We think the point is made.

We wait in anticipation to see what happens on the planned 1 August boycott - the campaigners say they will then ask people to repeat the boycott every Monday thereafter. If in the meantime you want to register your support or find out more go to the campaign site or to the cut-down petition version at dumpthepump.co.uk. ®