Islanders won’t see benefit of fuel discount scheme - MP

MOTORISTS in Scotland’s island communities may not see the benefit of a fuel discount scheme because of recent price hikes, a Liberal Democrat MP said today.

From tomorrow, islanders will see a cut of 5p per litre in the price they pay at the pumps for petrol and diesel. But politicians representing some remote communities said they had been told prices had recently gone up.

Liberal Democrat Alistair Carmichael, who represents Orkney and Shetland, said he was told that prices garages had to pay for fuel had risen by 5p in the last two weeks.

He said the island discount scheme, being brought in by the UK Government, would only work “as long as everybody plays fairly and honourably”.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander confirmed in November that the pilot scheme would be brought in in the Inner and Outer Hebrides, islands in the Clyde, the Northern Isles and Scilly.

At the time Mr Alexander hailed it as “terrific news for island communities which have long suffered the effects of high fuel costs”.

But Mr Carmichael said today he had received evidence from Shetland that “a local garage had had the price they were required to pay put up 2p per litre this week and 3p per litre last week”.

When asked if that meant there would be no difference in the price paid by motorists, he said: “That’s the danger.”

Angus MacNeil, the SNP MP for the Western Isles, warned that the scheme could be scrapped if the discount was not passed on to motorists.

Mr MacNeil said he had had “retailers phoning me that they are concerned the price of fuel is going up just before” the discount is due to come into effect.

He added: “The scheme is on probation, it is a pilot scheme, and any government that feels that this isn’t being passed on to the consumer will end the scheme.”

However Sam Chambers, director of the company Scottish Fuels, denied any suggestion of profiteering.

He said: “How do you profiteer if you’re making 2.6p per litre? The margin we make is to cover our transport costs to the customer, we have drivers to pay.”

Mr Alexander insisted the the scheme would make a “real difference” to people on the islands.