In a new report, it found that there is currently no pathway for replacing taxes from fuel duty and “no reliable estimate of what the process of implementing the net zero policy is actually likely to cost British consumers, households, businesses or government itself”.
In 2019-20, fuel duty raised £28bn, representing about 3.3 per cent of all tax receipts, equivalent to £1,000 per household and 1.2 per cent of national income.
The value of the duties are also expected to plummet over the coming decade in the lead-up to the 2030 ban on sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles.
The government has “too often pursued stop-start strategies which undermine confidence for business, investors and consumers in committing to measures which would reduce carbon emissions - especially when some green alternatives are still significantly more expensive than current options,” the report reads.
Treasury officials questioned by the committee were “reluctant to be drawn...