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French win right to cut fuel duty
Page 8
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FRENCH REGIONAL governments have been given the power to cut local excise duties on diesel and unleaded petrol.
Following intense pressure on the French government from truck operators and drivers, farmers and fishermen, Paris won permission from the European Union to derogate from EU laws, which ban such flexibility.
The plan has been pushed through the EU Council of Ministers by France's Jacques Barrot, the EU Transport Commissioner.
It will allow reduced regional taxation on unleaded petrol and diesel, provided the cuts are no greater than €23 per 1,000 litres of diesel. Also, the reductions must not exceed any difference between the diesel duty charged to France's non-commercial and commercial users.
Mindful of protests from other governments, the council has attached conditions, notably that regional variations are linked to local "socio-economic conditions" and do not grant a region "a competitive advantage in intra-EU trade". However, this is not defined financially.