Fuel prices in the UK have reached £10 per imperial gallon at around 150 petrol stations, with diesel costing up to £2.20 per liter. This surge in costs is putting pressure on Chancellor John Healey to reconsider Labour’s planned increase in fuel duty scheduled for January. A survey of nearly 10,000 people shows that over half of drivers are reducing their driving due to high prices, and nine out of ten respondents support freezing or cutting the Fuel Duty.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-07,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Diesel prices in the UK have reached £10 per imperial gallon, equivalent to £2.20 per liter, at over 150 forecourts across the country, including locations near Winchester. This marks a record high and adds pressure on Labour's Chancellor John Healey to scrap plans for increasing fuel duty in January when the current freeze ends. The Petrol Prices website conducted a poll of nearly 10,000 people, revealing that almost nine out of ten respondents support freezing or reducing fuel duty from January 1st due to rising costs and their impact on daily expenses. With petrol prices surging after the US initiated its war on Iran in February, drivers are cutting back on journeys; over half report driving significantly less since then as inflation rises. Sixty percent say they have reduced travel because their vehicles remain essential for work, school runs, or medical appointments, highlighting the broader economic strain.
Written for “UK Fuel Price Crisis” on 2026-10-07,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.35, but every quote it verified points right, so the score is not published.
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Leaning score withheld for article 62276: score contradicts its own evidence · logged 2026-10-07
Filling up has surged past £10 a gallon for the first time at dozens of forecourts, analysis today finds.
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analysis → fill → forecourts
Data show the cost of diesel has surged to £2.20 a litre at up to 150 stations – the equivalent of £10 for an imperial gallon.
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cost → show → gallon
This is the traditional measurement for fuel and it is believed to be a record number of forecourts where it has hit the £10 milestone.
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it → believe → milestone
Hitting the milestone will pile pressure on Labour to abandon plans to hike Fuel Duty in the New Year after average diesel prices surged to an all-time record of more than £2 a litre last week.
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prices → hit → 2
It comes as a mega poll found more than half of drivers are cutting back on journeys because of sky-high pump prices.
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half → come → prices
Six in ten said they were 'driving a lot less' since February, when the US launched war on Iran, sending the cost of petrol and diesel spiralling.
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cost → say → petrol
In turn, it has stoked inflation.
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it → stoke → inflation
Highlighting the hit to the wider economy, nearly seven in ten said they were cutting spending elsewhere as many said driving less wasn't an option because their vehicles were a 'lifeline' for getting to work, doing school runs or attending appointments.
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vehicles → highlight → appointments
Data show the cost of diesel has surged to £2.20 a litre at up to 150 stations – the equivalent of £10 for an imperial gallon
Diesel prices have hit £10 a gallon - or £2.20 a litre - at several UK forecourts, including this one near Winchester
Chancellor John Healey is under growing pressure to abandon plans to hike Fuel Duty in the New Year
The mega poll of nearly 10,000 people, by the Petrol Prices website, found nearly nine in ten supported freezing or cutting Fuel Duty from January 1, when the current freeze on the levy expires.
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freeze → show → levy
It will pile pressure on Chancellor John Healey to ditch the planned hike in his first Budget later this month.
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It → pile → Budget
RAC Foundation Director Steve Gooding said: ‘Drivers who thought they would save money from the better fuel economy diesel offered over petrol cars will be thinking again now that their forecourt prices are starting to hit £10-a-gallon.
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prices → say → 10
‘A £10 per gallon diesel price is not just bad news for diesel car drivers, it’s bad news for everyone as the operators of the many commercial vehicles – vans, trucks and lorries – that are still diesel-powered seek to recover the extra costs they now face.
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they → ’ → costs
‘Getting out of fossil fuels altogether might be the answer for the longer term, but company balance sheets are all about the here and now, something we can only hope the Chancellor has in the front of his mind when putting his Budget plans together.
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Chancellor → get → plans
Some haulage firms have seen their weekly diesel fuel bills surge by hundreds of thousands of pounds, which is largely passed on to consumers via higher prices on supermarket and shop shelves.
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which → see → shelves
The RAC Foundation analysis of listed forecourt prices found standard diesel was being sold at more than £2.20 at nearly ten forecourts across the country.
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diesel → list → country
It was being sold at up to 219.9p at up to a further 144 forecourts.
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It → sell → forecourts
Under current plans, Fuel Duty will rise by 3p per litre on January 1, with another 2p rise on March 1.
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Duty → rise → March
The Treasury is also scheduled to end the 16-year freeze on Fuel Duty next year, adding a further 1p in April.
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Treasury → schedule → April
VAT will add another 1.2p a litre.
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VAT → add → 1.2p
The combined 7.2p increase would add almost £4 to the cost of filling up a family car with petrol.
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increase → combine → petrol
Diesel prices have hit £10 a gallon - or £2.20 a litre - at several UK forecourts, including this one in Southampton
Some haulage firms have seen their weekly diesel fuel bills surge by hundreds of thousands of pounds, which is largely passed on to consumers via higher prices on supermarket and shop shelves
Treasury sources have said that 'no decision' has been taken on the Fuel Duty increases.
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decision → hit → increases
But retaining the 5p duty cut alone would cost the Treasury £2.4billion a year at a time when Mr Healey is struggling to balance the books.
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Healey → retain → books
According to RAC figures, average diesel prices across the UK were 200.17p yesterday and 174.91p for petrol.
uncertain
prices → accord → petrol
A government spokesman said: ‘Since the outset of the war in Iran this government continues to protect the British people and businesses from this crisis.
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government → say → crisis
‘This means drivers benefit from the extension of the 5p Fuel Duty cut, with diesel 11p per litre cheaper until the end of the year than it would have been compared to plans inherited from the previous government.’
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it → mean → government
The Aporia
