A Labour minister has refused to rule out petrol rationing, as prices at the pump soar due to the Iran war. The Tehran regime's crippling de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — a key global trade route for oil and gas — has caused major disrpution to the global markets.
Treasury minister Dan Tomlinson squirmed as he was pressed on whether the Government was planning for petrol rationing. Mr Tomlinson, who declined to say whether this was the case, said: “At the moment, it is too early to tell what the impact of this crisis will be in the coming months. What we have seen in the last two weeks is that there has been sharp increase in the cost of oil used to heat people’s homes, and the Government has stepped in and said we’re going to provide £50 million of support for people across the UK who are reliant on heating oil.”
Asked again whether the Government was making contingency plans to ration petrol, the minister told Times Radio: “We will monitor the situation, and we’ll monitor it carefully.”
Figures released on Monday suggested diesel prices have soared by an average of 18p per litre since the start of the Middle East conflict.
The RAC said the average price of the fuel at UK forecourts on Sunday was 160.3p per litre, compared with 142.4p when the US-Israeli campaign against Iran began on February 28.
The 13% increase means diesel is at its most expensive level since November 2023.
Petrol prices are up 7% over the same period, rising from 132.8p per litre to 141.5p per litre.
A number of countries in Asia, where the majority of oil and gas flowing through the Strait of Hormuz heads, have already announced measures to reduce fuel consumption amid the deepening Middle East crisis.
Donald Trump has urged allies, including the UK, to send warships to the Gulf to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
However, this call has so far fallen on deaf ears.
Sir Keir Starmer is one of the leaders to have resisted the demand, saying he would not allow the UK to be drawn into a "wider war".
Mr Trump told reporters at a press conference on Monday that he is "not happy" with the Prime Minister and said the UK "should be involved enthusiastically" in efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
