Government ‘sticking the boot in’ with red diesel plans

GOVERNMENT plans to remove the red diesel rebate from a number of industries have been slammed by the head of an Omagh building firm.

The move, which affects the construction, manufacturing and minerals sectors, is set to heap an additional £25 million cost each year across the North, according to industry bodies.

Willie Moffitt, who runs Moffitt and Robinson Construction Ltd, accused the Westminster government of “sticking the boot in” as the industry recovers from the pandemic.

He told the WeAreTyrone, “The government is well aware that timber prices have gone up around 100 per-cent in the last year, with cement prices doubling. To then put the cost of red diesel on top of it is a mammoth tax on an already stressed industry.”

The government says the reform, which takes effect from April, is to help drive businesses toward cleaner sources of fuel and reduce greenhouse emissions.

Mr Moffitt, who is also the regional president for the Federation of Master Builders, questioned the logic behind this reasoning.

“I’ve never heard something explained so poorly. How on earth does that lower emissions? If you have to use diesel, you’re going to have the same emissions whether you use red diesel or clear diesel,” he said.

“They say that it’s about reducing emissions and to lead us to alternative fuel, but there are no alternative fuels for small and medium sized enterprises out there.”

Mr Moffitt explained that smaller businesses depend on the second-hand machinery market, meaning that if large companies are only just starting their transition to greener technologies, the machinery will not be sold on for ten years or more.

“It would make Pinocchio’s nose grow to come out with a statement that it’s all about reducing emissions,” Mr Moffitt added.

West Tyrone MP, Órfhlaith Begley has called on the Treasury to re-examine the proposals as it risks putting firms under “extreme financial pressure”.

Mr Moffitt claims the loss of the rebate on red diesel, which is just the same as white diesel but with a dye, will add to already ballooning construction costs which will inevitably be passed to customers.

He said, “It has so many knock-on effects. For example it will add around £7 per hour on renting a digger and those costs will add up when every piece of machinery working on a house will have to be running on clear diesel.”