New car tax proposals to charge vehicles based on weight risk pricing rural drivers off the road completely, according to leading experts. The Countryside Alliance has written to Rachel Reeves, urging the Chancellor to reject proposals for a new weight-based Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) fee.
They claim the new fee would unfairly penalise people living and working in rural areas. It comes after the European Federation for Transport and Environment (T&E) suggested the introduction of a flat rate of £10 per kilogram to every kilo above 1,600 kg. Meanwhile, the Resolution Foundation also suggested tying vehicle weight to distance, with heavier cars paying more per mile.
David Bean, Parliament and Government Relations Manager at the Countryside Alliance, said: “Not content with the Chancellor’s failed attempt last year to balance the nation’s budget on the backs of farmers, campaigners are now lobbying her to balance it on all rural dwellers who need larger vehicles to get around.
“People in the countryside already pay over the odds for transport, but taxing vehicle purchases by weight would make the problem worse still.”
Previous research has suggested that rural households spend almost £800 more each year on fuel than urban households. Meanwhile, those in the countryside tend to pay up to 6 pence more per litre to top up their vehicle at the pump.
Those living in rural areas also tend to travel farther, with country residents averaging 5,767 miles annually compared to just 3,624 for those in urban areas.
Countryside Alliance’s letter concludes by urging the Chancellor to recognise the unique needs of rural communities and to reject the tax proposal ahead of the Budget.
There is understood to be a need for the Treasury to find a new tax system, with billions of pounds in revenue lost as more drivers switch to electric vehicles. Previous estimates have suggested £25billion could be lost in fuel duty, VAT and VED fees.
David added: “Farmers, gamekeepers, and conventional drivers – especially the most vulnerable – all depend on sturdier, higher-performance vehicles when travelling the fields, hills and lanes that define rural Britain. This plan risks pricing them off the roads and out of their jobs.
“Following the disastrous reception in the countryside of last year’s Budget, with its hated Family Farm Tax, the Chancellor needs to be more sensitive than ever to the needs of rural working people. She should file this proposal in the bin.”
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