THE Balearic Government is calling on farmers, fishermen and lorry and taxi drivers to form their own co-operative so that they can negotiate with the major fuel companies and hopefully receive some form of discount.
But what about the rest of us? Many people who work in Palma drive to work and it could be argued that without their car they can't work. I don't see why there should be any form of discrimination. Almost 250 million pounds is raised in fuel taxes in the Balearics every year and little is sent back from Madrid in investment. I understand that the above industries rely on fuel for their livelihood but I think the Balearic government is rather missing the point. The tax on fuel can be lowered and this fall should benefit everyone not just a lucky few.
Perhaps we should all form some giant co-operative and call on the fuel companies to drop their prices or ask the government to drop taxes. The money from the fuel tax is meant to be invested in better roads but the Balearic Government has said that they don't want to build more roads because it will lead to more accidents. So the long suffering motorist is caught in a Catch 22 situation, he or she will continue to pay high petrol prices, have to use inferior roads and be discriminated against because in theory you don't need your car for work and therefore are not eligible for discounts.
Jason Moore