The Price of Petrol

Americans who despair at $4 a gallon petrol prices at the pump might be cheered by taking a peek at mattters in Britain where petrol now costs roughly £6 a gallon (or approximately $12). Gordon Brown did his best to produce a rabbit out of nowhere today, announcing “measures” to increase North Sea oil production from next year. But this is only going to fool credulous fools. This handy little graphic produced by the Automobile Association shows why Brown’s gambit won’t work:

So, there you have it. If petrol is becoming hideously expensive, it’s at least largely Gordon Brown’s fault. Now, for sure, you can make a case for high prices being a good thing, incentivising the production of alternative energy and encouraging consumers to switch to more fuel-efficient vehicles and heating and so on and so on. But that’s something – if it’s what Brown believes – that would require a degree of, yes, Courage…