QUOTE (Sherlock @ Jan 12 2013, 08:15 AM)
You don't need to: this is usually pretty up to date.
http://www.petrolprices.com/Let's hope that our MP learns a lesson from this about the nature of free markets and competition.
Businesses will rig prices to maximise profits and avoid competition if they possibly can: they always have and they always will.
When Mr Benyon (and his Libdem mates) looks at all the local businesses charging exactly the same amount, to the .9 of a penny perhaps he will ask himself* whether it really makes sense to hand over a tsunami of public cash to private sector firms which are queuing up to run the NHS, police, prisons, benefits system etc etc.
* he won't, obviously
Sorry, but what?
The site you reference tells me that you can buy diesel within 10 miles of Newbury (and I'm guessing that probably at the M4 service station) at 149.9p/litre, which is relatively expensive. But then you can also buy diesel within 10 miles of Newbury at 140.9p/litre, which is relatively cheap, so there's no price fixing, it's just different places charge different amounts for the same thing. Like everything else.
And Swift-Hook wants you to boycot the garage selling diesel at 140.9p/litre? Why?
Sure, say you you drive to Winchester, there's a garage there selling diesle for 138.9p/litre, but if you don't do your research you might also fill up at one of the Winchester garages selling diesel for 143.9p/litre, so there's no great anti-Newbury conspiracy going on.
So say you commute to Winchester, if your car does the same ecconomy as my Volvo you'll be spending around £25 per week on diesel, so yes, compared to Newbury's cheapest service station you could save 35p each week if you filled up at Winchester's cheapest, but Julian Swift-Hook could save you way more than that on your council tax if he addressed just some of the inefficiency at the Town Council that he leads.