Thursday 10 July 2008

No Sense of Duty

Almost nine million motorists will pay more road tax under the government’s impending reforms, Treasury minister Angela Eagle has admitted.

An estimated 44% of vehicles made since 2001 fall foul of the changes in excise duty aimed at discouraging use of fuel-thirsty cars, according to official estimates, with owners of the most polluting vehicles having to pay an extra £245 per year.

Backbenchers have already criticised the backdating of the scheme to cover cars built as far back as 2001, saying they already hit the poor unduly hard. However, genuinely poor people pointed out that they were all right, thanks, as those of them still able to afford any kind of car at all were still driving round in manky old Astras from the early 90s.

“This is an outrage,” said one motorist in the home counties. “I’m driving around in a little Honda CR-V diesel and I’m going to get stitched up by that creep Brown, while some street-racing chav an unbadged T-reg BMW who thinks he’s Jeremy bloody Clarkson gets away scot-free? We’ll see about that. I’m writing a letter to the Daily Mail about this.”

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