The price of a barrel of oil has hit record levels – sky-rocketing by 25% in the last four months alone. With petrol prices now averaging 110p a litre across the UK and all six energy providers increasing their tariffs already this year, how concerned are you about further oil price rises?

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Community

Very. My car is all I have after a lifetime working but now find it very hard to pay the exorbitant petrol prices.

KR

this post is slightly inaccuarte,average price is around 115p per litre given diesel in manchester can be found at 119p per litre with unleaded around 115p per litre,im more concerned because ever 3 months my bus pass seems to rise

gone up by over 50% in the last 2 years,

next will be taxi rates,most have increased barely by the rate of inflation but you can bet your bottom dollar that black cabs regulated by the city council in manchester will soon be starting at a rate over £3 instead of £2-£2.30 with the rate per mile going up to around the same.

so what would cost around £8-£9 for a 3 mile journey would go up to over £12

Not only am I concerned as I have to drive 82 miles (return journey) to work each day but as I live in a rural area which has no gas supply my heating and hot water is fueled by domestic heating oil which now costs over £500 each time I need to fill the tank - I thought that £45 per month would easily cover it on top of £69 per month for the electricity but it is going to increase substantially soon.

For goodness' sake! Russia has announced that it has already reached "peak oil production", ie they have extracted as much oil as they economically can, other major oil producers are desperately searching for new fields to exploit because they know they have passed the "peak oil" point, but have been unsuccessful in that search. The only oil that is left is going to be VERY expensive to extract, and guess who will be footing the bill? Oil prices are NEVER going to come down in our or our children's children's lifetime. We have run out of cheap oil and we need to be thinking NOW about how we're going to survive without it. We need to wean ourselves off the oil/petrol/plastics habit now. The governments of the world are too scared to tell us the truth but the sub-prime mortgage fiasco, the credit squeeze, and rocketing food prices are all symptoms of the same disease, ie exploitation of finite resources for short term gain. That's how we've reached the state we're in. WE need to "be the change we want to see". We can buy locally produced, in season food, grow our own food if we can, eat less meat, walk or ride a bike whenever we can (using "personal" energy is doubly rewarding, you save petrol and burn calories!), lobby for better public transport, take the train not the flight, turn off the light in the empty room, start living our lives on the basis of NEED not WANT. Learn about ways of conserving energy in every aspect of life. We aren't going to get a second chance. Assume that someone is going to throw the energy switch to OFF very soon - it is going to happen, but it's just possible that a better way of life will emerge at the other end of that dark, dark tunnel. And if this sounds like hippy dippy preaching, well, I'd rather think about solutions than problems, so I'm very happy to admit to trying to spread the "Sustainability" word - and I humbly suggest that if people want to see a happy future for their children and grandchildren in a no-longer oil-rich world, we need to start thinking really hard about how we can work together towards that end. Governments won't do this one for us until we show them the way.

Phew - thanks (I think) for that. Don't get me wrong - I'm all for saving energy (my electricity is supplied via the SP Hydro Electric tariff and I have double glazing and energy saving light bulbs) and if the Government were serious about reducing our collective carbon footprint they should be offering subsidies for people to explore greener options. For example, subsidies so that people can install solar panels or wind turbines on their roofs - if there were options to do this I would but I can't afford to do these in the current climate. I would also consider ground source heat pumps but again the price is prohibitive.

Given the option I would gladly get off this oil demand led ride but I can't get my employers (the Government) to allow me to get in that much later due to the horse not being as fast as the car.

Agreed Rocky, it's scary that Big G (the Government that is) don't seem to want to move on this one, maybe they've been inoculated against fuel poverty..... there's probably a more sinister reason that nothing is happening on the renewable energy front but hey, we've got enough to worry about so we won't delve into that right now! Or maybe we should...

Germany is way ahead of us on this in terms of subsidies for green initiatives. Wouldn't it be great if we could all share best practice instead of doing this competitive thing all the time - competition had its place but cooperation is of greater value now I think, we don't have enough time left for the adversarial way. Conversion of exisiting housing stock to more sustainable energy solutions will have to comprise a major part of the governement's plan regarding the reduction of carbon emissions, so presumably they will wake up and realise this at some point.... keep on keeping on, and don't dismiss the horse altogether... think of all that lovely manure for the vegetable plot!!!

I have worked all my life and have saved my money so that I can have a reasonable retirement and enjoy my car.

Sucessive greedy governments keep hammering the motorist because we are an easy target, it's time some savings were made in Whitehall, we are hearing more and more of the scandalus waste by those who have been elected to serve us.

Community:

The price of a barrel of oil has hit record levels – sky-rocketing by 25% in the last four months alone. With petrol prices now averaging 110p a litre across the UK and all six energy providers increasing their tariffs already this year, how concerned are you about further oil price rises?

i think its a concern for most people,in particular ,the elderly,and those who live in rural area's,but even families are begining to struggle,coupled with high gas and electric bills,and food getting higher as well, the debate on fuel tax,is the thing,and i have every sympathy for the haulage industry, who are going to the wall over this!, what i don't understand is why opec isn't pumping more fuel, in the short term to allow some respite?,if the markets let oil get to $200 dollars a barrell as the scares suggest,we may as well all pack it in!

As a couple who need their cars for work, as there is no alternative transport. We believe that this Government is hitting those in employment very hard especially at the lower end of the wage bracket. We have worked hard all our entire life to pay our bills and mortgage, but feel the Government have done nothing for us. Those at the top get richer while we get robbed.

PAM

Pam You are dead right, politicians talk about going green, then you see on the TV great big Jaguar cars taking 1 man 2 or 300 yards to his next appointment. These taxes on fuel etcetra only hit the poorer in society, it's time the table were turned and the rich were made to take a greater share in the tax burden.

Alan

The Government don't appear to have any coherent policy on this at present. I work for a Govt department and we have just been told that we need to reduce our carbon footprint by taking the train to business meetings or if possible, cycling or walking. However, I am still required to drive 82 miles a day to work when I could easily do my job more locally or even from home. Some form of hypocrisy here I believe.

They also don't seem to have the motivation to develop policies to help those in rural areas - one of the remaining cornerstones of the rural community, after the Post Offices have been closed, the local pub is now closing at an alarming rate as people can't afford to drink (following the tax rises recently) and can't afford to drive to them. In the last couple of months by local area has lost three out of a total of six. The rural community will soon be a small business desert.

How can the Oil,Gas and Electric Companies make astronomical profits each year? whilst causing misery and desilation to the majority of the population. Why can they not absorb some of the increases (after all, they are always telling us they are here for our benefit aswell as making a reasonable profit - Ha Ha), there is no need for this rip off greed, that seems to be a malaise within these large corporations

Well said BigD01. It's always the case that after a period of supposed can't-be-helped rises that the companies announce huge profits. Ridiculous.

The oil price rises are bad in themselves, but the forecourt pricing is just daylight robbery from a thoroughly discredited government. With over 75% of the litre price being taxation, the blame for the current energy crisis is well within the government's remit and ability to fix. However, they have bankrupted the UK with an illegal war and selling our gold stocks. As usual, England just moans and whinges on forums instead of actually doing something. We could avoid recession if the government simply reduced their flat rate tax of £0.57 per litre by 20p. That's all it would take. Our haulage costs would be in line with the rest of Europe, transport costs would drop and thereby the cost of living would reduce. Inflation would drop and therefore give more scope to interest rate cuts. All for the sake of 20p off diesel and petrol.

Not much to ask ...

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For every positive action, there's an equal and opposite government plan.