Do you think we're getting a fair deal when it comes to petrol and diesel prices? Our Tameside Radio presenter feels greedy filling stations charging well over the odds should be called out.
I remember passing my driving test back in 1995. Take That, Outhere Brothers and Bobby Brown dominated the charts. Forrest Gump won Best Picture at the Oscars. Sunday afternoon drinking was introduced in pubs.
Weirdly, I can also remember the price of petrol...a paltry 49.9p a litre. My Mini City had a pretty small tank, so it didn't break the bank to fill it to the brim. It also rarely broke the 60mph speed barrier, so there wasn't much danger of an SP30 in the post.
These days, petrol prices are a lot more volatile, and since the war in Ukraine, prices have suffered from the so-called 'rocket and feather effect'. They shot up alarmingly quickly, almost breaking the £2 a litre barrier at one stage, but have been decreasing slowly in recent months.
Supermarkets stand accused of operating a pricing cartel, something they deny, but it certainly seems that with pressure on food prices due to soaring inflation, fuel is no longer the 'loss leader' it once was. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating whether customers are paying over the odds, and is due to report back next month.
Representatives from Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons all say they support the idea of a 'pump watch' transparency scheme, which is already used in Northern Ireland, to better inform drivers on wholesale prices compared to the price being charged at the pump.
I will drive on the warning light past an expensive filling station if I know the next one is going to be less ; this did backfire on me once, when we broke down in the middle of a busy junction in Harrogate after I refused to pay the extortionate prices being charged by several places on the outskirts of town, knowing there was a Tesco just down the road which we didn't quite make it to.
Fuel campaigners and motoring groups have long campaigned for more transparency and fairness when it comes to pricing. I always wonder who buys the drills sets, torches, and other items advertised on posters at the pumps.
Also, why do I always get stuck behind the person who's in the Mini Mart doing their weekly shop, faffing about putting on gloves, or generally taking an age to pay for their petrol? These are issues for another time, but I needed to get them off my chest.
The CMA heard a flash of honesty from David Potts, the Chief Executive at Morrisons, who admitted they were 'probably right' to suggest there is more profit these days in fuel than has been historically seen.
Of course, the Government gets the lion's share, and I guess a flunky fills up the Prime Minister's car up for him (he famously borrowed someone's red Kia Rio for a photo opportunity when he was Chancellor, and had trouble paying as he seemingly had never used chip and pin).
From raging food inflation to rampant energy prices, the daily pressure on households is immense. It's hard to see things getting better any time soon.
We've been told by Rishi Sunak to "hold our nerve", whatever that means. I do a job I love, but certainly won't be seeing a double digit pay rise to match inflation. Many millions are having to make difficult choices daily.
Angela Rayner, the Ashton MP, has spoken movingly about her own upbringing, and I feel she genuinely understands what it's like to have to face these impossible daily dilemmas.
Sadly, a lot of the Westminster elite live on another planet. From the Bassetlaw MP who suggested buying cheaper baked beans to "30p Lee", I often despair of the calibre of our elected representatives. Where are the serious solutions?
I never thought I'd see security tags on blocks of cheddar or steaks. We live in surreal times. I've started buying the majority of our fruit and veg from a local greengrocer, and the quality is fantastic, whilst the prices are on a par with the supermarkets. If you can, check out the local markets and independent shops, alongside the convenience offered by the supermarkets.
Our high streets are struggling, like the rest of us, and they'd appreciate your custom. And bring on more fuel transparency, to shame greedy filling stations charging well over the odds.
You can listen to Alex every weekday from 6am to 11am on Tameside Radio 103.6FM.
