Petrol headed towards $3 a litre? Govt looks at solutions as anger grows
I pull up at my usual spot near the station and catch a couple of blokes staring at the servo's price board: "Two euros six for diesel, you see that? Bloody insane." It's not just coffee chat anymore; it's a daily financial update. And everyone knows who's copping the blame: the government. With excise stuck in place and promises evaporating faster than a full tank, it feels like the whole country's running on fumes while our wallets are getting emptied at the pump.
The excise shuffle and spiralling prices
In the Beehive, they reckon they're looking at new moves. But we've seen this movie before: they talk the talk, while prices keep walking. And it's not just petrol. Check out diesel: on the motorway, the self-service bowser has smashed through the two-euro mark. And that's self-serve, mind you, not the full-service price! It's a gut punch for everyone, from truckies to commuters. The official spiel is always the same: global oil prices and international tensions. But talk of an excise cut is stuck in limbo, lost in a haze of meetings and spin. In the meantime, here's what's actually happening at the pumps:
- In the suburbs: petrol is now sitting pretty above €2.10 a litre. Diesel, believe it or not, has overtaken 91 in some spots.
- On the motorway: it's the Wild West. Diesel self-serve has hit highs of €2.20, and for full-serve, don't even ask.
- On the open road and outskirts: only a few independent joints are keeping it real, but you need the patience to hunt them down and the luck to catch the owner who hasn't hiked prices yet.
The spectre of the Yellow Vests (and then some)
And as the cost of fuel becomes a daily slug, plenty are looking at France with a bit of unease. The ghost of the Yellow Vest movement has never felt closer. It started there, over a diesel tax hike, and brought a nation to a standstill. The thing is, when a tank of gas costs the same as a decent feed, the anger builds. You don't need to own a flash house with a terrace, BBQ and garden to feel the squeeze: even those out in the 'burbs commuting into the city for work are doing it tough. Let alone the poor bugger who's booked a swanky holiday home just metres from the beach, hoping to save on travel, only to be hit with these crazy prices just getting around. The dream getaway gets smashed to bits at the very first fill-up.
We're not in Kazakhstan, where back in 2022 the Kazakhstan protests kicked off over fuel price hikes before blowing up into something way bigger. But the lesson's there for all to see: messing with people's hip pockets, especially on getting from A to B, is like walking through a minefield. The government knows it, and between one press release and the next, they're trying to avoid the spark that lights the fuse. For now, the only sure thing is the pump meter spinning faster and faster, while we watch on and mutter under our breath.