THIS WILL MAKE CHINA STOP AND THINK....

So, yet another hike in the fuel duty came into force today. In the last couple of weeks I have renewed the annual road tax (£165,) renewed the car insurance (£390) and now I face paying almost £1 per litre - well over £5 per gallon - for the petrol. In fact, I heard lunchtime that in rural areas of the south-west, the price has already gone above £1 per litre, bringing particular dismay to people living in rural areas.

I`m not too surprised at the speed with which the price rise has been implemented. A few years ago, coming home from a holiday in north Devon, I needed to get some petrol as I knew we had to cross Exmoor and I didn`t know when I might find the next garage. So I had no choice but to pay the £1.13p I was charged at the only garage in Lynmouth...and I`ve never been back there.

Now, the Government say that today`s rise in fuel duty was signalled in the Budget some months ago; that there will be similar hikes next year and the year after that and so on....all because of the need to limit the use of road transport so as to reduce carbon emissions, tackle global warming and save the planet. So that`s alright then.

Sorry, Gordon, I don`t believe it. I`m sure it`s yet another in HM Gov`s clamour to raise more revenue. I wouldn`t mind so much if they were honest about it, but let`s be clear - we are already taxed higher than any other country in western Europe (at least France did away with the road tax licence when they put up their fuel duty); if you`re well off, another 2.3p (inc. VAT) on the price of a litre of petrol won`t make any difference to you and the fact that at least 70p - possibly more, I don`t have the figures - of the cost of each litre goes to the Government is nothing short of outrageous.

But the main point is that from now until the same time next week, another coal-fired power station will have been commissioned in China. I`m sure they will stop and think about the efforts we`re making here before they build any more - not!

There are times when my optimism glass is half full and times when it`s not. Right now, faced with the ever increasing cost of my essential motoring, I feel I`m running on empty.