The i News reports that households in rural areas are paying £2,000 a year more on transport costs than those in urban areas, according to Government figures

This has been associated with the fact that they often have to travel further to work or school and rely heavily on private cars.

The Liberal Democrats have urged that drivers in rural areas such as Cornwall, Devon and Cumbria should receive further tax breaks on the cost of fuel to help ease the rising cost of living.

The party is calling on the Government to increase the rate of fuel duty relief and expand the scheme to cover millions more drivers, as petrol and diesel prices continue to spiral.

Fuel duty relief is currently offered in remote parts of the UK where prices at the pumps are higher, however reports reveal that only 10,500 residents in England benefit from the scheme.

The Liberal Democrats calls for an emergency cut to VAT, together with the fuel duty relief is reported to save rural drivers £7.60 each time they fill up their car.

Nonetheless, the proposal falls short of industry demands who want to see more significant action.

Record UK petrol price risks a mass exodus of essential workers

The Guardian reports that a record increase in fuel prices could spark a mass exodus of staff who rely on their vehicles for work, especially in rural areas.

Last week Thursday, the price of a litre of unleaded petrol hit 182.31p, meaning the cost of filling an average family car hit £100 for the first time, with some employees who need to drive for their jobs spending as much as £350 a week on fuel and others are “paying to go to work”.

The GMB trade union warned that the increase had “crushed” its members and said that shortfalls of staff in the transport and healthcare industries were “only going to get worse as prices continue to shoot up”.

NHS staff highlighted that the fuel price rise had outstripped the reimbursement they were given for petrol costs, so staff were now paying not just to get to work, but also to drive to patients’ houses to do their job.

Reports also highlight that some taxi and private hire drivers had been forced to take second jobs or work six-day weeks to deal with fuel costs.

Full articles:

The i News - Rural voters spend £2,000 extra on transport a year say Lib Dems as they call for fuel duty cut

The Guardian - Record UK petrol price risks a mass exodus of essential workers