Triple whammy of tax rises on petrol will make unleaded over £1 a litre

Three scheduled increases, totalling 7p a litre, will begin with a 2.35p per litre increase in duty from October 1.

The AA and the Petrol Retailers' Association urged the Government to defer the rises indefinitely after the AA published its latest fuel price report yesterday.

Combined with the 1.47p duty hike from December 2006, the October rise alone will mean a typical two-car family will be more than £100 a year worse off, said the AA.

But there is even more pain to come. As oil prices rise to record levels, the Government is also set to impose 2.35p in extra duty next April and 2.11p in April 2009.

The Treasury already takes about 70p in every pound as tax on petrol, which costs an average of 95.2p per litre.

Paul Watters of the AA said: "This is the highest rise in fuel duty since March 2000.

"Combined with the duty rise last December, UK families with two cars will be hit with a tax rise that is nearly twice that of this year's average council tax increase.

"When the Chancellor set out his March budget, he failed to take into consideration the volatility of oil prices.

"Then, oil was $57 a barrel, today it is $82 in the U.S."