As fuel prices reach the highest level in the UK since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Scottish islanders are feeling the pain more than most. On the mainland, the price of diesel has soared to a record high of 200.01p a litre, bringing the cost of filling an average family car to more than £110, according to the RAC. Petrol has risen by a third since the start of the Iran war at the end of February, averaging 174.71p – increasing to 195.64p in motorway service areas.
In the Hebrides and Shetland, prices at the forecourt have jumped even higher, with some fuel stations selling diesel for more than 220p a litre during the initial rise. While European governments appear to have staved off a US export ban that could have sent prices even higher, in Shetland the lack of competition and the cost of shipping to remote areas have made it the most expensive place in the UK for fuel. The ramifications for island life have been immediate.
Adam, 43, who lives in North Uist in the Outer Hebrides, said diesel had reached £2.28 a litre on the island, making his 45-mile round commute particularly expensive. He and his wife have diesel cars that they need for work and transporting their three children. Same with getting things delivered here because you have to drive more miles.
But when something like the price of diesel skyrockets, it really hammers people here more than other places around the country,’” he says. In between work and dropping children off with his wife, Adam says they really rack up the miles. To cut costs, Adam says the family is having to buy the cheapest food they can, given that food prices are also dependent on the price of diesel that haulage companies pay.
I never thought I’d look up at a £2.18 diesel price and think: ‘Oh, quick, I better fill up now.’ It’s really bad. Although people think of this place as really tiny, you’re in your car all the time. I average 15,000 miles a year, and my wife does even more because she’s a health visitor.
She gets the same mileage as someone who’s a health visitor in the central belt, yet we pay a lot more,” he says. About 26,000 people live in the Outer Hebrides, mainly on the largest islands of Lewis and Harris. Adam says rising prices have also hit accessibility to public services, which are already difficult to reach for islanders.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
