The Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced that the 2p increase in road fuel duty planned for October will be postponed indefinitely. Fuel duty will remain at 50.35p per litre for the forseeable future.

Motorists have welcomed the move but commented that it is something of a drop in the ocean – with fuel prices already up 22.5% since the beginning of this year.

The Chancellor Alistair Darling, on the other hand, was keen to point out that fuel duty is actually 17% lower in ‘real terms’ – i.e. taking into account inflation – than it was in 1999.

Darling said that by postponing the increase in fuel duty the government was helping “motorists and businesses get through what is a difficult time for everyone.”

More interesting to me is the news that oil prices have started to fall a little – could they have peaked? Watch this space.