2014年经济学人 燃油税 逍遥骑士

Fuel duty

Easy riders

The fuel duty freeze is politically astute¹ but financially ill-judged

Pump priming

ON December 3rd George Osborne confirmed that he would not increase the price of fuel duty, an unpopular tax on motorists. Soon Mr Osborne will have overseen² the longest freeze of fuel taxes in 20 years. Motorists are rejoicing. But though politically savvy³, the chancellor⁴'s move is unlikely to last long.

The Treasury⁵ argued in April that the freeze, which will have reduced fuel duty by 13% in real terms by the end of this parliament, boosts spending elsewhere in the economy by helping⁶ cash-strapped consumers. But parts of the Treasury's analysis already look dated. Since that report was published, the oil price has tumbled by 37%, from $113 a barrel to $71. This continues to reduce prices at the pump. The oil price is now beneath the $75-a-barrel threshold at which the chancellor has previously⁷ suggested he would raise the duty.

Mr Osborne—with an eye on the election—was quick to rule this out. But if the oil price stays down, the next chancellor might struggle to resist the temptation, especially as driving has already got cheaper. Cars are around a third more efficient than a decade ago. The price of a new car has risen only slowly since 2007, while that of a second-hand⁸ one has plummeted⁹. Since 2004 the overall cost of motoring has lagged inflation. And the average distance of journeys fell by 12% between 1995 and 2013.

Despite the freeze, taxes still account for 64% of the petrol price, which is 1.21 ($1.90) per litre. They make up 63% of the price of diesel¹⁰, which costs 1.26 per litre. This is higher than in most countries.

There is a strong environmental case for the tax, which helps to reduce pollution and congestion¹¹. Drivers may delight in cheaper fuel, but not if they have to sit in miles of traffic queues and collectively hurt the environment. And unlike some other taxes, fuel duty is easy to collect. It is far less toxic¹² than road pricing or congestion charges. It is a fairer tax than the vehicle excise¹³ duty: those who travel the farthest pay the most. This also makes it greener, says Stephen Joseph of the Campaign for Better Transport, a lobby group. And the tax is lucrative¹⁴: each year fuel duty brings in around 27 billion, making it the sixth-largest source of government revenue. Mr Osborne's policy may yet be put into reverse.

1 astute   

adj.机敏的，精明的

参考例句：

• A good leader must be an astute judge of ability.一个优秀的领导人必须善于识别人的能力。
• The criminal was very astute and well matched the detective in intelligence.这个罪犯非常狡猾，足以对付侦探的机智。

2 overseen   

v.监督，监视( oversee的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was overseen stealing the letters. 他被人撞见在偷信件。 来自辞典例句
• It will be overseen by ThomasLi, director of IBM China Research Laboratory. 该实验室由IBM中国研究院院长李实恭(ThomasLi)引导。 来自互联网

3 savvy   

v.知道，了解；n.理解能力，机智，悟性；adj.有见识的，懂实际知识的，通情达理的

参考例句：

• She was a pretty savvy woman.她是个见过世面的漂亮女人。
• Where's your savvy?你的常识到哪里去了？

4 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

5 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

8 second-hand   

adj.用过的，旧的，二手的

参考例句：

• I got this book by chance at a second-hand bookshop.我赶巧在一家旧书店里买到这本书。
• They will put all these second-hand goods up for sale.他们将把这些旧货全部公开出售。

9 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

11 congestion   

n.阻塞，消化不良

参考例句：

• The congestion in the city gets even worse during the summer.夏天城市交通阻塞尤为严重。
• Parking near the school causes severe traffic congestion.在学校附近泊车会引起严重的交通堵塞。

12 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

13 excise   

n.(国产)货物税；vt.切除，删去

参考例句：

• I'll excise the patient's burnt areas.我去切除病人烧坏的部分。
• Jordan's free trade zone free of import duty,excise tax and all other taxes.约旦的自由贸易区免收进口税、国内货物税及其它一切税收。

14 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。