A COUNTY Durham MP has continued his ‘war on petrol prices’ after demanding that supermarkets in the region reduce the cost of fuel after seeing that some filling stations differed by up to ten pence, despite only being 18 miles apart. 

North West Durham representative, Richard Holden, attacked the “unfair” differences in petrol and diesel prices at the start of the month after investigating the costs for residents in both Consett and Bishop Auckland. 

This was prompted by constituents reaching out to the MP at the end of last year to highlight the “maddening” fuel costs between certain supermarket chains, including Morrisons and Tesco. In some cases, this was as much as £5 each time people filled up their car. 

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Mr Holden first wrote to the supermarkets on the issue in February 2020 but did not receive a response. He raised the matter again on Twitter last week, demanding an explanation from both Morrison’s and Tesco.

When this failed, the County Durham Member of Parliament yesterday (January 12) took to the House of Commons to call out the “unfair practice”.

Firstly, raising the issue with the Business and Energy Department (BEIS) during a meeting, Mr Holden was told by the committee that “any price collusion would be illegal and treated incredibly seriously by the Competition and Markets Authority”.

The Northern Echo: The MP has criticised Morrisons for having "completely different" prices for both its Consett and Bishop Auckland filling stations. Picture: RICHARD HOLDEN MP.The MP has criticised Morrisons for having "completely different" prices for both its Consett and Bishop Auckland filling stations. Picture: RICHARD HOLDEN MP.

He also raised his question in the Commons Chamber, with the Minister of State Business, Energy and Clean Growth, Greg Hands MP, agreeing to meet with the MP to discuss the petrol price issue.

Since his intervention, Morrisons have emailed Mr Holden and have dropped their petrol and diesel prices by 1p each at their Consett site. However, they remain very significantly above prices in Bishop Auckland, according to the North Durham MP. 

He said: “My constituents are fed up with being screwed over by supermarkets ripping them off with significant differences in the price of petrol between Consett and Bishop Auckland – despite pumps being only 18 miles apart.

The Northern Echo: Tesco was also attacked by Mr Holden for its differing prices between Consett and Bishop Auckland. Picture: RICHARD HOLDEN MP.Tesco was also attacked by Mr Holden for its differing prices between Consett and Bishop Auckland. Picture: RICHARD HOLDEN MP.

“That is why I have called on both Morrisons and Tesco to amend this unfair practice.

“I appreciate that Morrison’s have dropped their price difference by 1p, but much more needs to be done, and I look forward to meeting with the Minister of State for Business, Energy and Clean Growth to discuss just what can be done very soon.”

“I will always do whatever it takes to stand up for my constituents against unfair practices.”

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When contacted by The Northern Echo, a spokesperson for Morrisons said: “In the UK, petrol prices vary from town to town and even neighbourhood to neighbourhood and we will always strive to be competitive in each local area.

"Occasionally this can mean price differences between different areas open up. We continually review our prices and will look to reduce this difference as soon as we can."

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Tesco added: “We regularly monitor fuel prices throughout a local area to ensure we’re providing competitive prices for our customers.”

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