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Agriculture Community facilities small business | September 01, 2016

Call for inquiry into regional fuel pricing

The Nationals-Liberal Coalition has proposed in Parliament this week to establish an inquiry into fuel prices in regional Victoria.

The Nationals Member for Lowan, Emma Kealy MP said people from the Lowan Electorate feel like they are being ‘ripped off’ at the pump and there is no question that cost-of-living pressures are taking their toll on households and families.

“Local motorists and businesses are concerned about the discrepancies in prices for fuel in different towns and there appears to be no logic behind the inequitable fuel prices,” Ms Kealy said.

“This has been a long-running frustration for local people who are paying much higher on average than other towns across the state,” she said.

The inquiry, to be referred to the Law Reform, Road and Community Safety Committee, would consider pricing of unleaded, diesel and LPG fuels and include, but not be limited to, five other terms of reference:

• Examine the methodology behind pricing, particularly the divide between metropolitan and regional communities
• Consider approaches and initiatives elsewhere in Australia, with a view to reducing fuel prices
• Look at fuel price comparison technology
• Investigate the impact of pricing on families, businesses and industry
• Assess the influence of regulations and legislation on fuel pricing

The latest fuel report from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) shows although petrol prices are falling, these dips are not being passed onto consumers in shrinking retail margins.

“I hope the inquiry will help us find a way to overcome some of the inconsistences our communities face when they buy fuel,” Ms Kealy said.

Fuel prices are just one of the cost-of-living pressures Victorians can share with the National-Liberal Coalition’s CostWatch website, www.costwatch.com.au. The CostWatch campaign is committed to driving down costs and making your dollar stretch further.