British drivers have been warned to brace for a sharp rise in running costs as Labour plan a pay-per-mile tax system for 2025.
Drivers are being warned that they should expect a "sharp rise in road tax" next year, with the average driver facing £1500 a year as Labour ramp-up their war on the motorist.
With Brits already bracing themselves for the October Budget that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said will be "painful", a hike in road taxes is likely to tip thousands of motorists over the brink and push them into giving up their cars altogether.
Unlike fully electric vehicles, which are exempt until April 2025, owners of hybrid cars do have to pay for their road tax.
Since the current system is initially based on the engine size or amount of carbon dioxide it produces, most hybrid vehicles pay about £10 in tax for the first year, followed by the standard flat rate of £190.
However, under a pay-per-mile system, in which drivers are charged unique figures based on how far they have travelled in their vehicle, both hybrid and fully electric car owners would face the charges.
The Government have yet to confirm if a pay-per-mile system will be introduced in the Budget, but experts maintain that the tax is definitely coming and will be in place by the end of next year. The exact price for a mile is not known but some industry experts are predicting the figure could be as high as 15p per mile.
That is on top of all the other costs of car travel, including sky-high fuel bills, huge insurance hikes and the ever present threat of speeding tickets from smart cameras now lurking on many roads.
According to figures sourced by Stable Vehicle Contracts, the average hybrid car driver covers around 8,300 miles per year in the UK. meaning that they'd pay £1,245 if the charge is 15p per mile.
The average UK driver covers about 10,000 miles a year meaning eye watering bills of £1500 in 2025.
There is some debate around the likelihood of 'fuel duty' being included in the PPM system, but the smart money is on it remaining as a form of 'punishment' for those who refuse to give up the internal combustion engine.
Some have argued that the system would be fairer to owners of all vehicles, including electric cars, and could also help to incentivise other forms of transport for shorter trips, however, it is unclear why any government should be meddling in private decisions such as that.
'Encouraging' people out of their cars is a 'fluffy' way of saying that left-wing zealots want to stop your movement.
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