Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 11 May 2020 to Question 42938 on Fuels: Excise Duties, what estimate he has made of the number of SMEs that would benefit from a temporary suspension of fuel duty for the logistics sector during the covid-19 outbreak.

This Government is committed to support the logistics sector and haulage businesses in the United Kingdom, which are an essential part of our economy.

Budget announced that fuel duty would be frozen for a tenth consecutive year. This has saved the average van driver £18 and the average haulier £113 per tank of fuel relative to 2011. To deliver this saving for businesses and households, the Government has foregone already £67bn and will forego a further £46bn by the end of 2025 compared to fuel duty rising in line with inflation. Furthermore, HGV Vehicle Excise Duty has been frozen since 2001.

Fuel duty raised £28.0bn in 2018-19, contributing to meeting the costs of vital public services such as the NHS, that are playing a crucial role in aiding the Government’s economic response to the COVID-19 pandemic.