Saturday 29 May 2010

Put A Chrysler Sunbeam in Your Life for 30p a Gallon: Never Again, says AA.

According to the AA, petrol prices are unlikely ever to go below £1.10 a litre in Scotland again, even though costs are on their way down and we are an oil rich nation. The reason is a combination of increasing fuel duty from London, and Opec’s measures to keep oil prices reasonable high, usually by restricting its supply. The organisation argues that we will never see prices fall below £1.

History shows that petrol in this country has, allowing for inflation, kept normally within a fairly narrow band price wise. But today, at an average price of around £1.20 a litre, the cost is about 40% higher than the long-term trend.

There have been two periods in the past 108 years when prices have been so high. In the mid to late 50s, shortly after a post-war period of petrol rationing ended, they were as high as today. And during the First War they were the equivalent of about £1.90 litre. Of course as only the aristocracy could afford cars at that time, it wasn’t a huge issue for the likes of you and me.

Since the end of the 90s, crude oil has doubled in price, making this the main cause for fuel increases for the past decade. However, ten years ago, a government report found that, between 1990 and 1999, the price of North Sea oil fell 30%, yet fuel prices rose about 30%, and this was partly attributed to taxation. Today, 75p of the £1.20 that we pay for unleaded goes to the London exchequer.

So it's a combination of both plus greed of the oil producers that has caused our rapidly growing prices. This year we've had all of these. On 1 January 1 VAT went back up to 17.5%, which added a couple of pence to the cost of petrol. An increase to fuel duty and a scrapped subsidy has added about 2p extra from the beginning of April (with more due to come later in the year). Plus, according to the AA, wholesale prices went up 17% this year so far, which has put another 5p on top.

Petrol here is probably the most expensive in the world. I wonder if anyone reading this has noticed any country where it costs more...

As we couldn’t let a whole week go by without a wee bit of Petula, I thought that it might be an idea to look at how much petrol cost back in the late 70s.... well in this ad for a Chrysler Sunbeam, it’s 30p a gallon... about 7p a litre......

Oh happy days....


...........

PS: Pic for Brownlie (nice legs, huh?). Promise I'll do Peggy Lee soon!

28 comments:

  1. 30p in the 1970s is worth squillions now........In fact my wife only cost me 10p (and two sheep a duck a goose and a ferret )

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  2. Hum... what did you cost her though Niko.... huh? That's what I wanna know.

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  3. Tris

    I see you never paid a dowry for your other half
    as you would know only one has to pay the piper.
    and for the rest of his miserable life Dance to her tune....

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  4. Ahhhh Niko.... but the art of it is to sing in harmony....

    And I'm sure you and Mrs Mixed Pickle do... really.

    On the other hand there are sone good second hand shops down Lieth way, or so I'm told.... or Exchange and Mart... or ebay!!

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  5. Dennis Hoppers ghostMay 29, 2010 7:28 pm

    Chrysler Sunbeam. That was cool car in the early 80's. Along with the Hillman Avenger 'Tiger' which I proudly owned. And the wee Hillman Imp that I also had which blew up. I messed up the shim replacements on the camshaft and it shook to death. I knocked someone down with my Imp and he was hardly winded. Great wee car just flipped him onto the low bonnet and away into the grass.
    Then they sold out to Talbot and you got the Talbot Horizon etc and it doesn't bare mentioning after that. Down down down.

    I've found out where you can get some free petrol tris. Need a dive suit though. And ticket to the Gulf of Mexico..

    http://globalwarming.house.gov/spillcam

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  6. tris,

    Very pretty lassie! Is it Sophia?

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  7. Lard Prescott of PiesMay 29, 2010 7:39 pm

    brownlie

    Excuse me. I get first shout. Get to the back of the queue lad.

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  8. brownlie... I think it's her sister...

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  9. Lol @ Dennis Hopper's ghost... and wlcome to Munguin.....

    You've had some adventures with cars then mate. Poor wee Imp (I get sentimental about my cars. I hate the thought of them shaking to death LOL.) That was a sewing machine engine that the Imp had... and was it a Singer Gazelle that was the same thing but posher? (LOL a posher Hillman Imp!!!!)

    Anyways the link won't play there.... :¬( but I think I know the free petrol you mean... why don't you nip over and get some for me while you're there.... :¬)

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  10. Hoy, your graciousness... hands of Clarky, she's mine, Brownlie was only getting to peek!! OK?

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  11. Oh just another wee thing DHG... you say "down down down" (which I agree with), but in view of Ms Clark, should it not be "down down town"?

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  12. tris

    She looks a bit like my cuty Cathy the new MP - well, just a little bit!!

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  13. Back on topic, I paid £1.34 a litre in Harris a couple of months back - apparently, it costs 14p per litre for transportation!!!

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  14. Dennis Hoppers ghostMay 29, 2010 9:04 pm

    tris
    I think you might mean the Singer Chamois. A friend had one. Very pretty thing with better seats etc.
    Those links are strange. Never seem to work when you copy and paste yet it's exactly as I have it in my bookmarks. Just the camera on the seabed showing the free oil gushing out.
    Downtown was a good song aswell !

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  15. Mr Alexander returns immediately to that London.May 29, 2010 9:08 pm

    Oh no we've lost Harry Potter our Scottish Secretary !
    I thought he loved the job and was going to make it bigger and zzzzz........

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  16. Like Cathy... WHAT...???? I'm right on the phone to Geneva matey, she'll not be happy about that!!

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  17. Aye transportation is expensive Brownlie; it's the cost of the fuel that does it...erm... sorta.

    Seriously 14p a litre to take it across to Harris....Crikey!

    Ah, but the joy of being on Harris would make it worthwhile....

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  18. DHG... That's it Chamois... Well remembered.

    But there was a Singer Gazelle... what was that, the posh Minx?

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  19. Ho Ho Ho....

    So I see Mr Alexander.... Very good....

    Who in hell is Mr Michael Moore?

    Is he not some left wing American satirist and film maker? What's he gonna do in Edinburgh?

    How is it a promotion (according to the Times) to be moved from being the boss at the Scottish Colonial office to the Treasury as Second in command under wee Georgie Porgie?

    And finally in these random thoughts.... I see that poor Mr Mundell is left on the shelf again. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride, eh David?

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  20. It that two-jobs Cathy Brownlie?

    Munguin, stop pandering to Brownlie's phobia for legs. It's got to stop and you're not helping!

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  21. SR... It was me that insisted on the leggy pic for Brownlie...well, and for me too, coz she's got very nice legs....well she has, hasn't she?

    Munguin is far too prim and proper to put half naked ladies on the blog...

    Yeah right!

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  22. Talking of two jobs I see that Joke McConnel has now got THREE jobs. I wonder how the people of Wishaw feel about him only giving a third of his attention to their needs....?

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  23. I should think they'd be delighted if he gave them a third of his attention Tris. He's given them none for years. Was just talking to a couple from Falkirk this week and they said exactly that.

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  24. subrosa,

    Cathy is very versatile and excellent at multi-tasking! Substitute "fever" for phobia!

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  25. I guess so Subrosa. I think Labour are using our parliament as a springboard to what they see as a better and bigger thing in London. Of course there's an extra £10,000 in it, so I suppose it's bigger as far as most of them are concerned.

    If the likes of wee Cathie or Vinegar Face Curren think that there's any hopes of promotion to ministerial rank (and real money) I think hell will freeze over first. Then again the last Labour government had people like Ainsworth.

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  26. OK brownlie... 'Fever' it will be for my next post.....

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  27. tris,

    That is it! Apart from your in-sin-iations about my fixation with busts you now insult my Cathy. Leader of the party in two years and Prime Minister in five. I will be proud to be her consort - or last resort!!

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  28. It was legs brownlie, get a grip.....

    From what I've heard she spoken for, or rather spluttered, for by a one more noble that what you are or could ever hope to be....

    Sorry mate... It's George.

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