MP laments fuel ​​​​​​​costs

As Borderers struggle with the rising cost of living, the fuel price discrepancies are widening even further, says Mr Lamont, who says he welcomed fuel market action by the UK Government in June, but the 5p cut to fuel duty was being implemented more gradually by some retailers than others.

He said that although fuel prices were rising as a result of the increasing cost of crude oil due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the global economic recovery from Covid, it’s also caused by a growing gap between the price of crude oil entering refineries and the wholesale price of petrol and diesel leaving them,

In June, Mr Lamont identified increased fuel prices in the Borders compared with more urban parts of Scotland, using the site PetrolPrices.com, which compares the cost of fuel offered by different providers in one local area, which he said confirmed a concerning disparity between prices available to rural and urban fuel consumers.

In the week up to August 10, the price of unleaded petrol in Shell’s Galashiels store was 167.9p, but was 175.9p in the company’s Jedburgh base.

Similarly, BP’s Peebles branch offered unleaded petrol at 172.9p, whereas it was almost 10p higher, at 181.9p, in St Boswells.

Mr Lamont said: “Local residents continue to contact me with legitimate concerns about the cost of fuel. As a rural community, using a car is often crucial for Borderers to go about daily life. However, current prices continue to put a strain on hard-working local families.

“While prices have come down slightly since my research in June, overall, they remain eye-wateringly high.

“My research confirms that prices on the forecourts continue to be a postcode lottery in the Borders. This is unacceptable, and retailers must be held accountable for the continuing shocking discrepancies in prices.

Jedburgh councillor Sandy Scott said: “Unfair access to the best prices for fuel is putting unnecessary strain on families struggling with the rising cost of living.”